Akali worker joins Cong with 500 supporters

Nihalsinghwala, (Moga) Feb 23 (UNI) The Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) today received a setback as its leader Ajit Singh Shant joined the Congress along with his supporters in this constituency at the rally here.

Addressing a largely attended rally organised by the local Congress leadership, Punjab Chief Minister Capt Amarinder Singh said the leaders and workers of SAD were feeling suffocated in the Akali Dal due to the ''dictatorial policies'' of Mr Parkash Singh Badal and his son Sukhbir Singh Badal.

He said that prominent leaders from the Malwa belt including MLAs Gurpreet Singh Kangar and Sukhdarshan Singh Mrar had joined the Congress recently.

This, the CM said, was a pointer towards the widespread frustration among the rank and file of SAD.

Capt Singh said his government was committed to ''recover every penny from Mr Badal and his family as they looted the public exchequer and amassed wealth to the tune of Rs 3500 crore''.

The CM said he was confident that one day Mr Badal would be imprisoned for his misdeeds once the case was likely to be decided in the Supreme Court soon.

Taking the Punjab police to task, Capt Singh categorically warned the Police Administration that atrocities on the people would not be tolerated at any cost and the erring police officers would be dismissed.

He said that Akalis had given a free hand to the police force for their own vested interests during the Akali-BJP regime in the state, and now it was the high time to teach them a lesson.

The Chief Minister also informed that concerted efforts to forge friendship, goodwill and harmony between Pakistani Punjab and Indian Punjab today proved to be shot in arm with the assurance from Pakistani Punjab Chief Minister Ch Pervaiz Elahi to extend the dual carriageway from Sri Nankana Sahib to Sri Sacha Sauda Sahib to enable the devotees from India to pay obeisance at the holy Sikh shrines in Pakistan.

UNI XC PS HS RK1915