SAS Nagar: Blaming the BJP-led NDA government at the Centre for the LPG and oil crises facing the country, Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann on Sunday alleged the situation was due to the failure of the Union government’s foreign policy.
He also raised concerns over the excessive centralisation of power in the hands of a few leaders at the Centre, warning that such a trend is dangerous for democracy.
Speaking to the media on the sidelines of the Progressive Punjab Investors Summit, Mann said, “Due to the failure of the foreign policy of the BJP-led NDA government at the Centre, the country is facing the oil and LPG crisis.”
He remarked that US President Donald Trump, whom prime minister Narendra Modi describes as a close friend, should have consulted him before waging a full-fledged war against Iran.
“However, the Union government remained unfazed about the scenario emerging out of this war, due to which the people of the country are today facing this crisis,” he added.
Mann alleged that the present circumstances reflect a serious lapse in the country’s foreign policy framework. “This is a clear failure of the foreign policy of the country, and it seems that there is no such policy at the current point of time,” he said.
Highlighting Modi's frequent overseas visits, Mann said such travel had distanced the leadership from the realities faced by people in the country.
“The Prime Minister is mostly on foreign tours, due to which he is not aware of the problems faced by the countrymen. The situation currently prevailing in the country has never been witnessed before. In a month the Prime Minister spends 15 days on foreign shores, but his relations with other countries are far away from being cordial,” Mann claimed.
“The country should have foreseen the LPG and oil crisis and adequate arrangements should have been done well in time to avoid any inconvenience to the general public,” he said.
Mann claimed that excessive centralisation of authority is harmful for democratic governance. “Excessive centralisation of powers in the hands of two or three is a dangerous trend which needs to be avoided,” he stated.
Mann further remarked that decision-making in the Union Cabinet has become concentrated in a few hands.
“Barring two ‘big’ figures, there is no minister in the entire Union Cabinet, and even small decisions are taken by the duo which is running the country in a dictatorial manner. This sorry state of affairs has pushed the countrymen into a quagmire of problems,” he alleged.