- 5 weeks ago
Prime Minister Narendra Modi launched the election campaign in Punjab by criticising the Bhagwant Mann government over corruption, unutilised central funds, and a national capital riot conviction.
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00:00Good evening, you're watching NewsTrack with me, Maria Shaquille.
00:03The battle for Punjab has begun.
00:05Prime Minister Narendra Modi has sounded the BJP's poll bugle in the state
00:09with a blistering attack on the ruling Aam Admi Party.
00:13At a rally in Jalandhar, Prime Minister Modi branded the Aam Admi Party as,
00:18to quote him, Qatar Bayman Party.
00:20He slammed the party over the conviction of its former councillor Tahir Hussein
00:24in the 2020 Delhi riots case,
00:26accused the Bhagawan Taman government of failing to utilise central funds
00:30and said that the BJP is driving Punjab's development
00:34despite not being in power in the state.
00:37But this election will not just be a BJP versus Aam Admi Party contest.
00:42In Punjab, the Road to 2027 is likely to be a fiercely contested four-way battle
00:48with the BJP seeking expansion,
00:51the Aam Admi Party defending its last bastion,
00:54Congress battling internal divisions
00:56and the Kali Dal fighting to reclaim lost ground.
01:00As all four major players head into this high-stakes contest,
01:06we'll break down their challenges on the show tonight.
01:08But first, take a look at this report.
01:22The battle for Punjab has officially begun.
01:29With the Prime Minister firing his opening salvo in the poll-bound state.
01:37Addressing a public rally in Jalandhar,
01:40calling the Aam Admi Party a Qatar Baiman Party,
01:43the Prime Minister alleged that central funds meant for development
01:47have not been fully utilised by the state.
02:09But the Punjab government has not been able to pay for that money.
02:13But the Punjab government has not been able to pay for that money.
02:19Prime Minister Modi contrasted these attacks with the BJP's development push, saying the
02:25center is leaving no stone unturned to develop Punjab despite not being in power.
02:55Prime Minister Modi did not stop there, even slamming the Aam Army Party over the recent conviction of former party
03:02councillor Tahir Hussain,
03:04who was found guilty of the murder of an Intelligence Bureau officer Ankhir Sharma during the 2020 North East Delhi
03:12riots.
03:33Aam Army Party convener Arvind Kejriwal has hit back, saying the speech on honesty is not fitting when the BJP
03:40is dealing with
03:41allegations of Chanda Chori at the Ram Mandir.
03:46Currently, in the 170-member Punjab Assembly, the Aam Army Party has 94 MLA's, the Congress has a strength of
03:5416, and the Akali Dal has three MLA's, one more than the BJP's strength of two.
04:01But despite the meagre strength in the current Assembly, the BJP is counting on the woes of not Jusamani Party,
04:08but also Punjab Congress that continues to grapple with internal divisions and the Shiro Mani Akali Dal,
04:14which is fighting to regain political relevance after its worst-ever electoral performance in 2022.
04:21As Punjab heads towards a likely multi-corner contest, every major party faces a different challenge.
04:30The Army Party must overcome anti-incumbency, Congress must resolve factionalism, the Kali Dal must rebuild its traditional base,
04:39and the BJP must prove it can become more than a marginal player in a state that has long charted
04:46its own political course.
04:51Bureau Report, India Today.
04:54Joining me first on the show is Leader of Opposition in Punjab Assembly and Senior Congress Leader Pratap Bajwa.
05:01Bajwa, Prime Minister Narendra Modi has clubbed Congress with the Ahmadi Party as part of the failed India Alliance,
05:07reminding Punjabis of past Congress rules problems, that is, when you were in power in Punjab,
05:14and you have been accused of vote-bank politics.
05:17How do you respond to this renewed attack against the Congress ahead of the elections?
05:24See, Maria, firstly I would welcome the visit of Mr. Modi, our Honourable Prime Minister to Punjab.
05:32But unfortunately, Modi sahab remembers Punjab only when the elections are up.
05:39Punjabis always see Modi sahab as the Prime Minister.
05:43He should visit Punjab more often, and should not only make election speeches.
05:48Number one thing that, as Leader of the Opposition, I would demand from our Honourable Prime Minister is,
05:54Prime Minister sahab, you had promised Punjab
05:59MSP for a majority of our crops over there.
06:04Where is that MSP?
06:05That MSP is still not there.
06:08You had promised this to the farmers.
06:10When you had taken back the laws, I was a Member of Parliament here.
06:14The Government of India had promised MSP, they had promised a number of other things.
06:19Conveniently they have forgotten.
06:20Then number two, Modi sahab had promised farmers in whole of India,
06:26and especially of Punjab, that I will double your income by 2022.
06:30This is 2026.
06:32And we are just a couple of months away from the Punjab elections.
06:36And conveniently, Prime Minister has again forgotten about it.
06:40So, this is what I wanted to ask the Honourable Prime Minister.
06:44Number three, we have a 550-kilometre Maria border with Pakistan.
06:51It starts from Pathankot, it goes up till Frosper and Fazilkar.
06:58Majority of the weapons and drugs are coming from across the border.
07:02Drones are bringing them in.
07:0550 kilometres from the zero line till 50 kilometres,
07:08it's all under the charge of the Border Security Force.
07:13Rightfully, it is primarily the Punjab police.
07:18But in the first 50 kilometres, it is the Border Security Force.
07:22Why have we not been able to stop that inflow of weapons and drugs into Punjab?
07:28The Prime Minister should have conveniently, conveniently,
07:32he's mentioned drugs, he's mentioned about the gangsters.
07:37Can I please ask the Honourable Prime Minister,
07:42one or two of the top gangsters of Punjab,
07:46are today positioned in jails which are under the BJP-ruled states?
07:52How is it that they are in touch with their counterparts in Punjab
07:56on a day-to-day basis, on an early basis?
07:59The Honourable Prime Minister must answer this.
08:02You have raised a lot of questions to the Prime Minister.
08:04Are you then giving a clean chat to the ruling Aam Admi Party,
08:07which is the government in Punjab?
08:12No, Maria, you firstly asked me to speak on the Honourable Prime Minister's visit.
08:18I have not given a clean chat.
08:20You can never give a clean chat to Bhagawan Taman and Kejriwan.
08:23But it is under the patronage of the BJP.
08:28Bhagawan's government, the Honourable Prime Minister has mentioned about corruption.
08:31He has mentioned about various performances of this government.
08:37Nobody's life is safe.
08:38Nobody's property is safe.
08:40Gangsters are running the roost.
08:42Who is primarily responsible for this act in the state?
08:48It is the Union Home Minister.
08:50Why have you not taken action?
08:53The Home Ministry should have taken action against Bhagawan and Kejriwal government by now.
08:59We need a clear answer from the Prime Minister's how the gangsters are operating,
09:04how drugs are coming in, how weapons are coming in,
09:06and what has the Prime Minister done on it?
09:09Or what has the Honourable Minister done on it?
09:11Then another thing, Maria.
09:13Whole of Punjab is asking the Honourable Prime Minister.
09:16See, Punjab is not an agricultural state only.
09:18At one point of time, it was the major industrial state of India.
09:28If you take the Silk Route, if you open up the Silk Route,
09:31the only dry port that we have is the Vaga border,
09:38where the Honourable Prime Minister must put up before the Punjabis.
09:43How do we globally connect the Punjab's infrastructure and agriculture with global markets?
09:51But Mr. Bajwa, you know, you are saying that the Ahmaadi Party and the BJP are two sides of the
09:55same coin.
09:57In fact, the Prime Minister said that the people of Punjab will no longer want to waste their votes
10:01on Congress or the India Alliance,
10:03which is, of course, because you are part of that larger alliance,
10:07which also has the Ahmaadi Party.
10:09As the LOP, are you not worried that you will not be seen as a natural alternative
10:14if the people of Punjab are unhappy?
10:19It is the state unit of Punjab,
10:22which flatly refused to being a part of alliance with the Ahmaadi Party.
10:27And it is primarily because of that.
10:30BJP got a knot.
10:31It got zero seats out of 14 seats of Punjab.
10:3513 seats of Punjab and one of our capital, Chadigarh.
10:38BJP got zero.
10:39Arm got three.
10:41The Congress got eight.
10:43And how are you saying people of Punjab are clubbing Arm and Congress together?
10:47They are clubbing the BJP and the Ark together.
10:50They find that it is the BJP government which is trying to safeguard Bhagawan Taman
10:56from acts of omission and commission that is going on.
10:59Okay, as a leader of the opposition, I would request the Honourable Prime Minister.
11:04Can you give us a 10-year tax holiday for the industry in Punjab?
11:08Let us see him doing something positive.
11:10See, he gave this 10-year tax holiday to all hilly states.
11:15And the sunset clause has already come there.
11:18On the borders of Punjab, tax holiday was given to Jammu Kashmir.
11:23It was given to Himachal.
11:24It was given to Uttarakhand.
11:25It was given to the seven sister states of North-East India.
11:30Now the sunset clause is there.
11:32It's already finished.
11:33Why can't the Honourable Prime Minister give a 10-year tax holiday to go to Punjab?
11:39As the leader of opposition in Punjab assembly and a prominent leader of the Congress party in the state,
11:46how do you respond to this charge which is coming in from the Prime Minister directly
11:49that the Congress is responsible for weakening institutions and that you have done appeasement politics?
12:00Maria, whenever the Congress is there, shanti comes to Punjab, peace comes to Punjab.
12:06Everybody's life is peace, peace is safeguarded.
12:11The property is safeguarded there.
12:13You know when Punjab was disturbed for 15 years.
12:16It is the Congress which brought back Bhangda and Gita to Punjab.
12:21It brought back peace to Punjab.
12:23It brought back prosperity to Punjab.
12:26BJP has done nothing.
12:28They only come at the time of elections.
12:31Now because elections are around, Honourable Prime Minister is coming,
12:34but contributing nothing to Punjab, giving nothing to us, giving no hope to us.
12:39It is a state which was once a part of the golden era of Maharaja Ranjit Singh.
12:46They have placed his portrait there, but done nothing at all.
12:50Why don't you give us something where our industry, our trading houses can get around to the global markets?
12:59Why can't you give us a 10-year tax holiday?
13:02Why can't you do something lucrative for the youngsters of Punjab?
13:06Why don't you stop with all drugs and weapons coming into Punjab?
13:12Who is responsible?
13:13Directly either the union government or the state government.
13:17State government, everybody wants to boot out the state government.
13:20And Maria, they will do it.
13:22All right, Pratap Singh Bajwa, really appreciate your time.
13:26Thank you for joining us.
13:27Joining me now is our next newsmaker from Punjab.
13:30Sunil Jakar is a former Punjab BJP chief.
13:35Jakar Saab, Prime Minister Modi has sounded poll bugle for the BJP in Punjab.
13:39Soon after, we saw what Arvind Kejriwal tweeted.
13:43He tweeted, and I'm quoting him, that the leader of those who stole donations meant for the Shri Ram Mandir,
13:50in fact, visited Punjab today and delivered a speech on honesty.
13:56What will you tell Mr. Kejriwal?
14:00I would say that this is the standard operating procedure of Hamadmi Party.
14:05Whenever they are confronted with this harsh truth, which there are many, like everything, what they have done is reeking
14:12with corruption.
14:13They try to hide behind some religious or sentimental issue, one after another.
14:18Earlier, they were passing this Guru Grantham's desecration bill when the chief minister himself had got caught with whatever desecration
14:29that he had done to Guru Grantham's, hurting the feelings of the six.
14:36And whenever, like there's time and again now, they are again raking up the issues like some, one after another,
14:43they find one reason or another to hide behind such sentimental issue.
14:48I think this will not, Punjab will not buy this line that they are taking now.
14:55From corruption to drugs to multiple issues that the prime minister has touched upon today, you know, do you feel
15:07that those are the issues that will define the elections for the BJP?
15:11And how does the BJP in Punjab continue to maintain that momentum?
15:16Because all of you are on ground.
15:21No, the whole BJP organization is on the ground and we have been on the ground for a while now.
15:27Of course, we started like kind of from scratch because from 23 seats.
15:32Now we are going to contest 117.
15:34And ever since this type breakup of the tie with the Amma, sorry, Akali Dal, I think we have been
15:42working on this.
15:43And now I think we are in a position to take forward this message.
15:48And in this, I think it's not only our own effort, but I think all the misdeeds, all the misdemeanors
15:54of this Aham Admi Party,
15:56plus the so-called recognized opposition party Congress, I think that is a big boost for us.
16:02Because they have totally collapsed.
16:04They have come to the pressure and they are finding faults amongst themselves, calling somebody kind of a compromised or
16:14whatever they call themselves.
16:15But I've seen the entire opposition party, which is the Punjab Congress, seems to be compromised.
16:21Each one is calling the other a compromise.
16:23They do not have the guts to look into the eye of the chief, Mr. Bhagavan Taman.
16:27I think that is the only thing that goes to his credit, that he has shown the Punjab Congress leaders
16:32their true place.
16:33They cannot even look into the, cannot get up into the, with Ansaba and confront him.
16:38When he says, there's them to look into his eye and they all run away.
16:41I think this is, this says a lot about that.
16:44People are fed up with the government as well as the opposition.
16:47And I think, as you call it Tina factor, there's no other alternative.
16:51We are the default choice.
16:53But other than being a default, I think it is the, what the prime minister kind of, he has a
17:00bond personal, a bond with Punjab.
17:03I think he doesn't go to any state like this frequently.
17:07This is his second trip in the last five months.
17:10And more than that, people have listened to his speech today.
17:14You said he has raked up all the issues, which are going to be the main issues relating to Punjab.
17:19But more than that, I think something which he did not say.
17:24Symbolism, I think said a lot.
17:26The turban, which he normally wears when he comes to Punjab as his bond with Punjab.
17:30Today he wore a dark olive green pagadi, which represents, I think, Kisani, Kisan as well as Jawan.
17:40And I somehow asked him, I said, how come you are, today you are appearing at this green turban.
17:46Does it represent Kisan or does it represent Jawan?
17:49He says both.
17:50So I think this is his, what he feels.
17:52This is what Punjab, you have to say, Jawani and the Kisani of Punjab.
17:57And I think he feels for it.
17:58You know what Prime Minister said in the context of your former alliance partner, that is the Kalidal.
18:04He has, you know, directly attacked them and has called the Kalis self-absorbed.
18:12Many would say that this, in a way, ends alliance speculation.
18:16How is the BJP then consolidating all anti-Amadni parties?
18:21And are you also saying that there is fatigue against the opposition, which is the Congress?
18:27If you want to become a force in 2027, don't you think you need an alliance partner,
18:33particularly in a state where you do not have much of a toehold?
18:41No, I think people are just going by that there may not be visible leadership on the ground.
18:47But that does not mean that the BJP didn't have followers in the rest of the 20, like other than
18:5223 seats which BJP was contesting earlier.
18:55We had a following, but there was a kind of an unseen Lakshman Rekha because of this tie-up with
19:01the Kalidal.
19:02And it was not really a political alliance.
19:05I think that was an alliance that entered Badal-Sahab and Wajbeji
19:11to maintain the social harmony after the dark days of terrorism.
19:17It was a big, I would say, political sacrifice on part of a national party, BJP,
19:23tying into as a minor partner with the state party.
19:28So I think that did not mean that there was no following or people who believed in ideology of BJP
19:37or the working of the BJP.
19:38But out of due respect and the stature of Badal-Sahab, I think they did not let leadership develop.
19:45But I think leadership is, I think there are people who are capable and given an opportunity.
19:52I think each one of them, like on one hand, we, like they are talking, Congress is talking in terms
19:59of dividing.
19:59I think first they started with religion, Hindusic, now they have started with caste.
20:05I don't know where all they end up.
20:06But Prime Minister was very clear.
20:08He says, for me, it is mahila, it is youth, it is gisan and it is jawan.
20:13I think that is the classification BJP is working on.
20:17All right, Sunil Jaka, really appreciate your time.
20:19Thank you for speaking to India today.
20:21And joining me now is Arm Admi Party spokesperson, Bikram Jeet Singh Pasi.
20:25Bikram Jeet Ji, Prime Minister Narendra Modi has fired the first shot in the Punjab battle,
20:31calling the state a den of loot and lawlessness under the Arm Admi Party government.
20:35How will you respond?
20:38After looting the Ram Mandir, after stealing the Chanda, these Chanda Chores are now trying to show themselves as honest
20:46persons.
20:47The Chanda Chores have been helped.
20:50They have been given shelter by the Prime Minister and the whole team.
20:55And now they are trying to show that they are honest persons.
20:58But whole India knows that the whole India has been looted by this Jundali.
21:04We used to say that Jundali.
21:07Punjab has got nothing in this regime, in this government of Mr Modi.
21:11Punjab has only given setbacks, only knife at the back of Punjab by Modi government.
21:22This Modi government is the reason for the deaths of more than 750 farmers.
21:30Because neither farmers are getting anything in this Modi government, nor Jawans are getting anything.
21:37With the introduction of Agni Veer scheme, the Jawans are ruined.
21:45The lives of Jawans…
21:47The perception is that the Arm Admi Party is a depleting force in Punjab.
21:51And that has come after the defection of Rajya Sabha MPs of the Arm Admi Party to the BJP.
21:59Then are you really confident of the party still being able to fight unitedly behind Bhagwant Man?
22:07In Punjab, the Arm Admi Party is united, disciplined, and the seven MPs, which you are trying to say, they
22:15have lost their ground.
22:17Nothing remained with them. People are not with them.
22:20People are with the Arm Admi Party. People are with Sri Bhagwan Singh Ji Maan. People are with Sri Arvind
22:25Kejriwal.
22:26People are with the Arm Admi Party. And Arm Admi Party is winning each and every by-election.
22:31Even the deposits of Bharatiya Janta Party candidates, these ED Party candidates, have been forfeited in each and every by
22:40-election.
22:40Even in municipal council elections, municipal council elections, the deposits of our BJP candidates have been forfeited.
22:49All right. Let me move on to the next newsmaker now.
22:54Mr. Pasi, appreciate your time.
22:56Mahinder Singh Graewal is Senior Vice President of the Akali Dal.
23:00He is the former Cabinet Minister. He's joining me.
23:03Prime Minister Modi today directly attacked the Akalis, saying it is caught up in its own internal affairs and has
23:11no concern for the people of Punjab.
23:14How do you see this charge?
23:18I think this is all politics is playing.
23:23Sharomani Akali Dal never got weak.
23:26Yes, there were some fish wings.
23:29If that story is over, now Akali Dal is united and there are no dispute.
23:35We have a very strong president and the party is united behind him.
23:41Saying that there are some dissensions in the party, I think he's not placing the things in a right perception.
23:49The Prime Minister must be remembering that when he became the Prime Minister for the first time, what happened in
23:55Goa before that, that's not without the memory of everybody, how the senior most leaderships were treated and even then
24:06he became the Prime Minister.
24:07But Mr. Graewal, for the Prime Minister to say that the Akali Dal is irrelevant and self-absorbed and then
24:14the elections are approaching, does this mean that any possibility of a future alliance is now completely off the table?
24:23Look, Maria Punjab, Akash Romani Akali Dal is a major political regional party.
24:29Unfortunately, one thing is very sad that the government at present at the centre and any other government at the
24:38centre, they are never interested that the regional party should grow.
24:42Only the regional parties can meet the aspirations of the people.
24:46And you know, Punjab is not like other states.
24:49Punjab is always different.
24:51When there was Manmohan Singh government in Delhi, there was a Akali BGP government in Punjab.
24:57So, Punjab never chose the line of the rest of nations.
25:01They should forget this thing that they can treat it like other minorities of the country.
25:08The Punjab in general and the Sikhs in particular is a different minority and they cannot be treated in the
25:14same way they are treating other people.
25:18Punjab knows how to protect its interests.
25:22Punjab is wise enough to protect its interests.
25:25But I can assure one thing through you on this channel that BJP of its own stands nowhere in Punjab.
25:35Let me ask a question directly, Ugraywal Sahib.
25:38Will there be an alliance with a Bhajpa?
25:40Will there be an alliance with your NDA?
25:42Do you have worked with your NDA?
25:44Do you have worked with your NDA?
25:48Do you have worked with your NDA?
25:48Mariah, at this time the party even had a yesterday core committee meeting.
25:53The subject was never discussed, nor it is an issue at present.
25:56we are fighting, saying that Punjab's hadda, asi Punjab bachowna hai. So, we are now doing
26:03everything. And moreover, Maria, I tell you one thing, that the Honorable Prime Minister,
26:11while speaking in Chandigarh, has caused damage to Punjab and Punjab's interest. His speech made
26:17it very clear in Chandigarh that he has not even uttered a single word that Chandigarh belongs to
26:24Punjab, and they will transfer it to the Punjab. But he tried to put it that it's a connection
26:30between Himachal, Haryana, Jammu Kashmi, and Punjab. So, in other words, he tried to convey that,
26:38forget Punjabis, that Chandigarh belongs to you, it will remain union territory. So, I tell you,
26:46till date, they claim credit for opening Kartarpur-Sahab corridor. But unfortunately,
26:53they have closed it without any rhyme or reason. The Sikh institutions, every institution, including
26:59the most important Sikh religious body, Shromani, Gurdwara Prabhupada committed a number of times
27:07for it. Punjab was expecting today from the Honorable Prime Minister that he will say Kartarpur
27:14corridor is opened, trade between Pakistan and Punjab will open, and that Chandigarh shall
27:21be transferred to the Punjab. Rather, in the last year, the decision the central government
27:26has taken has jeopardized Punjab's interest over the Chandigarh. They gave Chandigarh some
27:36rights to the people who were not even entitled to that. But I tell you, they even can't say
27:43and guts to say that Punjab doesn't belong to Chandigarh. The injustice is being done to the Punjab in
27:49Journal and Sikhs in particular. People of Punjab remember that very deeply and rightly.
27:55All right, Mr. Greval, really appreciate your time. Thank you for joining us. That was the
27:58Kalidal perspective. In the last 25 minutes, I got you all views that matter in Punjab across all
28:05parties. That's all from me on this edition of NewsTrack. Thanks so much for watching.
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