Aam Aadmi Party on Saturday rejected Punjab Chief Minister Amarinder Singh’s appeal to all parties’ MLAs to accompany him to meet President Ram Nath Kovind on November 4 to request him to give his assent to the State’s amended farm laws.
Dubbing the CM’s move as mere political drama, AAP senior leader and Leader of the Opposition Harpal Singh Cheema said the party will not be a part of the delegation headed by the CM to meet the President.
Governor yet to sign
Mr. Cheema said the three farm Bills passed in the State Assembly by rushing amendments to negate the “controversial” Central laws were meaningless, asserting that these would not help protect the farmers’ interests. He said there was no point in meeting the President as the Punjab Governor has not yet signed the Bills.
He alleged that Capt. Amarinder was trying to fool the people of Punjab, especially the farmers, by projecting himself as their champion.
AAP MLA said instead of meeting the President, if the CM leads a delegation of all parties, to meet Prime Minister Narendra Modi, the party would gladly accept the offer.
‘PM’s puppet’
“Had Amarinder decided to stage a dharna outside the Prime Minister’s residence to repeal the black laws, including the Air Pollution Ordinance, the AAP would have extended its full support to him,” he said in a statement here.
Capt. Amarinder was a puppet in the hands of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, which was why he had not so far met either the PM or the Union Agriculture Minister and the Railway Minister alone or as a delegation against the black laws, he alleged.
Notably, the CM had appealed to all the MLAs to stand up and be counted and rise above party lines in safeguarding the State’s interests which are being trampled upon by the Union government.
