CHANDIGARH: With less than six months left for the 2027 Punjab Assembly elections, an intense political showdown was witnessed among the ruling Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), Congress, Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD), Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and Akali Dal (Waris Punjab De) at the annual Rakhar Punia festival in Baba Bakala, a historic town in Amritsar district. The parties held separate political conferences and traded attacks, while the BJP set up its own political stage at the event for the first time.
Addressing a gathering at a function to mark Rakhar Punia, Chief Minister Bhagwant Singh Mann said, "Several modern-day masands are holding rallies on this occasion to mislead the people on the pretext of religion. Wise people of the state have ousted these leaders who were living in palatial houses during their heydays of power and had never bothered about the masses. Those who claimed that they would rule the state for 25 years have been sent to political oblivion by the people."
Mann alleged, "During their long misrule, the Akalis committed the sin of beadbi (disrespect) to Guru Granth Sahib, shielding the perpetrators of this heinous crime and allowing firing on the innocent people. Every vote to Akalis will be a mandate in favour of beadbi. The Akali leadership can never be forgiven as it was responsible for the genocide of several generations of the state as drug trade was patronised by them and bloomed during their long era of misrule."
Attacking the BJP, Mann said, "BJP can win from any state in the country but it should never dream of winning from here. The people of the state are well aware of the dubious character of BJP and they will definitely teach it a lesson. Punjabis can never forget how the food growers of the state were humiliated by the BJP during the protest against the draconian farm laws."
Taking a jibe at the infighting in the Congress, he said, "While they are squabbling for the power for their vested political interest. Congress has no vision for the people and the state. The Congress is a divided house that will collapse due to their infighting."
Meanwhile, Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) president Sukhbir Singh Badal appealed to Punjabis to shun what he described as anti-Punjab and anti-Panth stooges of agencies who were working with the sole purpose of weakening the SAD and taking the state back to the dark era of the 1980s.
Addressing a gathering, Sukhbir Badal said, "These people have no respect for our religion. They shamelessly use our religious garb to attack us inside our Gurughar. If they come to power they will attack us in our homes. They want the dark era of the 1980s to return when people feared venturing out of their homes and the honour of our women folk was violated.’’
Asserting that the forces calling themselves Waris Punjab De were imposters, Sukhbir Badal said their leader tried to copy Sant Jarnail Singh Bhindrawala but did not utter a single word of condemnation when a video showing CM Mann urinating on a statute of Sant Bhindrawale was released in the public realm. Can anyone ask him why? he asked.
Urging people to recognise and shun such elements, Badal said Bhai Amritpal and his supporters had first run away from the police and then used the Guru Granth Sahib as a shield while leading a protest in front of a police station.
Launching a strident attack on CM Mann, the SAD president said, “It is shocking that the CM’s wife has solicited Rs 5 crore from a rapist."
Sukhbir further alleged that there was evidence that Mann had purchased 2,500 acres of land in Australia and earned crores in kickbacks by passing Change of Land Use (CLUs) besides taking money for postings and transfers. “I assure you that he will be held accountable for these corrupt activities”, he said, while asserting that AAP leaders who were taking monthlies from the drug mafia would also be held to account once the SAD formed the government in 2027.
Akali Dal senior leader and former minister Bikram Singh Majithia challenged CM Mann to contest from the Majitha constituency in the 2027 Punjab Vidhan Sabha polls. He said the people of Majitha would teach Mann a lifetime lesson if the chief minister contested from Majitha against him.
Meanwhile, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) set up its own political stage at Rakhar Punia for the first time. Addressing the gathering, Union Agriculture and Farmers Welfare Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan tore into the ruling AAP in Punjab, alleging that it had outdone even the Congress in corruption.
Attacking the AAP dispensation, he said the Centre sends funds to the state under various schemes, but they are siphoned off. "Centre sends funds and 'AAP' people siphon them off. When it comes to corruption, AAP has outdone even the Congress."
Chouhan assured farmers that the Central government would not compromise on their interests and that every agreement reached with farmers would be guided by their welfare. He said the Centre was committed to ensuring that farmers benefited from its welfare schemes. He specifically pointed out that the Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima Yojana (PMFBY) is being implemented in 23 states, but Punjab has not been covered under the scheme. He said farmers in Punjab should also receive the benefits of crop insurance and other farmer welfare schemes being implemented by the Centre.
He also criticised the law and order situation in Punjab, alleging that incidents of gang warfare were being reported frequently. He accused both the Congress and the Aam Aadmi Party of failing to undertake concrete work for the welfare of farmers and the common people.
Haryana Chief Minister Nayab Singh Saini said the people of Punjab were fed up with the Aam Aadmi Party government and had made up their minds for a change. He said the AAP government had ruined Punjab and had even surpassed the previous Congress government in corruption. The people of Punjab have, therefore, resolved to form a BJP government under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and make Punjab a strong, developed and well-governed state.
Launching a sharp attack on the AAP government, Saini said that in nearly four-and-a-half years, the government had turned its back on the promises made to the people and pushed Punjab into a quagmire of corruption. He said the AAP government lacked both the right policy and intent. Corruption is rampant in Punjab; rates have been fixed for every work, and nothing gets done without money, he said.
At the Congress stage at the fair, former Punjab Deputy Chief Minister and Congress MP Sukhjinder Singh Randhawa said the party's political fight was not against any individual but for the future of Punjab and against drugs, gangsters and what he described as government failures. He said Punjab did not need leaders who compromised with political parties for personal interests. He called for leadership based on “character, courage and accountability” and said promises made to people should not be forgotten after coming to power.
Targeting the state government's anti-drug campaign, Randhawa alleged that drugs continued to be sold openly in villages, streets and localities across Punjab despite the government's claims of action against the menace. He said the drug problem could not be addressed through advertisements and slogans alone and called for political will, accountability and action on the ground.
Randhawa also challenged Haryana Chief Minister Nayab Singh Saini to come to Punjab and publicly state that the water of the Sutlej-Yamuna Link (SYL) canal belongs to Punjab. He further demanded that Saini make his position clear on Chandigarh, saying Punjab would not compromise on its water, capital or constitutional rights.
Speaking about the Congress organisation, Randhawa claimed that the party was united and ready for the political battle ahead.
Meanwhile, Akali Dal (Waris Punjab De) held a large Panthic Conference titled “Sacha Gur Ladho Re”, drawing a sizeable gathering as the party raised issues concerning the Sikh community and mentioned the growing drug crisis.
A key highlight of the conference was Bapu Tarsem Singh reading out a pledge made to Punjabis by Bhai Amritpal Singh before the gathering. Under the pledge, the party said that if it gets the opportunity to take decisions on behalf of the people of Punjab, it would issue a white paper covering the period from 1997 to 2027 on the spread of drugs, drug-related deaths, supply chains, alleged political involvement and alleged links between the drug trade and sections of the police and security apparatus.