Arvind Kejriwal is slated to arrive in Chandigarh on Tuesday ahead of the Assembly elections.
Punjab is reeling under an unprecedented power shortage with urban and rural areas facing frequent load shedding and voltage fluctuations. (Express File Photo by Tashi Tobgyal)Ahead of the next year’s Assembly election in Punjab, Delhi Chief minister Arvind Kejriwal Monday announced that his Aam Aadmi Party will
provide free power to the people of the state if voted to power.
The announcement, that he made on his Twitter handle, came amid efforts by the ruling Congress in state to offer 200 units free electricity to all households, a key promise the party had made before the last Assembly elections which the party high command now wants fulfilled in a time bound manner.
“Enni mehngai vich ik mahila layi apna ghar chaluna bahot mushkil hunda hai. Dilli vich assi har pariwar nu 200 unit Bijli muft dinde haan. Mahilanwan bahot khush han. Punjab diyan mahilawan vi mehngai to bahot dukhi han. Punjab vich vee AAP di Sarkar muft Bijli dewegi. Kal Chandigarh vikhe milde haan. (It is very difficult for a woman to run her house in these times of price rise. In Delhi we give 200 units of electricity free to every family. Women are very happy. The women of Punjab are also hit hard due to price rise. In Punjab too AAP government will give free electricity. Let’s meet tomorrow in Chandigarh),” tweeted Kejriwal.
He will be in Chandigarh on a day-long visit Tuesday.
The timing of the announcement by the AAP convenor regarding free electricity and his visit to Chandigarh to announce the same is significant given the power crises being faced by Punjab currently. There have been widespread protests in urban and rural areas against breakdown in power supply. In many places, in rural areas, employees of Punjab State Power Corporation Limited (PSPCL) have been attacked
by irate farmers who have not been able to get the promised eight-hour uninterrupted power supply for paddy sowing.
ਇੰਨੀ ਮਹਿੰਗਾਈ ਵਿੱਚ ਇਕ ਮਹਿਲਾ ਲਈ ਆਪਣਾ ਘਰ ਚਲਾਉਣਾ ਬਹੁਤ ਮੁਸ਼ਕਿਲ ਹੁੰਦਾ ਹੈ
ਦਿੱਲੀ ਵਿੱਚ ਅਸੀਂ ਹਰ ਪਰਿਵਾਰ ਨੂੰ 200 ਯੂਨਿਟ ਬਿਜਲੀ ਮੁਫ਼ਤ ਦਿੰਦੇ ਹਾਂ। ਮਹਿਲਾਵਾਂ ਬਹੁਤ ਖੁਸ਼ ਹਨ
ਪੰਜਾਬ ਦੀਆਂ ਮਹਿਲਾਵਾਂ ਵੀ ਮਹਿੰਗਾਈ ਤੋਂ ਬਹੁਤ ਦੁਖੀ ਹਨ। ਪੰਜਾਬ ਵਿੱਚ ਵੀ AAP ਦੀ ਸਰਕਾਰ ਮੁਫ਼ਤ ਬਿਜਲੀ ਦੇਵੇਗੀ
ਕੱਲ੍ਹ ਚੰਡੀਗੜ੍ਹ ਵਿਖੇ ਮਿਲਦੇ ਹਾਂ
— Arvind Kejriwal (@ArvindKejriwal) June 28, 2021
Meanwhile, a war of words broke out between AAP and Chief Minister Capt Amarinder Singh with the main opposition accusing the Punjab government of refusing permission for holding Kejriwal’s Tuesday press conference at the Punjab Bhawan in Chandigarh.
Dismissing the accusation, Amarinder asked why would the state government stop Kejriwal from holding a press conference when he was allowed to hold a party programme a few days back.
“Totally not true. We let Arvind Kejriwal address a rally here just a few days back. So why should we stop him now from holding a press conference? If he wants I’d be happy to arrange his lunch too. Aam Aadmi Party just wants to do drama even if it means lying: Amarinder Singh,” read a tweet by Raveen Thukral, the CM’s media advisor.
Amarinder was apparently referring to Kejriwal’s June 21 visit to Amritsar for inducting former IG Kunwar Vijay Pratap Singh into AAP.
Earlier, the AAP’s state affairs co-incharge Raghav Chadha had said, “Amarinder Singh’s fear of Kejriwal has reached a point where his office has denied us permission to hold a press conference at the pre-decided venue. Nevertheless, Arvind Kejriwal will make a mega announcement tomorrow in Chandigarh which will send 440-volt current to Capt and his party,” Chadha said in a tweet.
Later AAP state president and Lok Sabha MP, Bhagwant Mann, said that Kejriwal will also release a plan to provide more facilities to women and arrangements for their savings. Mann said that the Captain Amarinder Singh-led Congress government has failed to provide facilities to the people due to which every section was feeling cheated. He said that paddy sowing was on in full swing, but non-availability of electricity is creating problems for farmers. “Arvind Kejriwal will also present his formula for overcoming the power crisis in Punjab,” he added.
BJP leader joins AAP
Senior BJP leader from Rajpura (Patiala), Praveen Chhabra, Monday joined AAP along with several of his associates at party headquarters Monday.
AAP MLA and Youth Wing state president, Gurmeet Singh Meet Hayer, state general secretary Harchand Singh Barsat and treasurer Neena Mittal, formally inducted the Chhabra, a former president of Rajpura Nagar Council, into the party and said that his induction would strengthen the AAP.
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