Ahead of Punjab polls, CM Mann urges voters to judge parties on work, not gimmicks

Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann on Sunday said his government had made progress in employment, education and healthcare, and urged people to assess political parties by their “actual work” rather than election-season “gimmicks”, news agency Press Trust of India reported.With Punjab set to go to the polls early next year, Mann targeted his political rivals, saying the Congress was occupied with internal disputes while a “political understanding” between the Shiromani Akali Dal and the BJP could harm farmers’ interests.Addressing a gathering at a ‘Lok Milni’ programme in Qadian, Mann said opposition parties should “stop dreaming” of halting the Aam Aadmi Party government's welfare schemes. He said the Punjab government believed in resolving people's everyday problems through direct interaction rather than delivering political speeches from stages.“We want to take this development journey further in the coming term and ensure that every section of society benefits,” Mann said. He asked people not to be influenced by electoral gimmicks, symbolic gestures or empty promises, and urged them to judge parties on their performance. Highlighting his government's work in education, healthcare, agriculture, employment generation and public welfare, Mann said, “Earlier governments considered people merely as vote banks and believed that elections could be won by distributing money and liquor. But today's generation is politically aware and judges governments by their performance rather than hollow promises. People want accountability, development and solutions to their problems.”He said previous governments had filled their own coffers, while the AAP government was “returning people's money” through welfare schemes and development work. According to PTI, Mann said his government had provided 71,777 government jobs “purely on merit, without corruption”. Mann said the use of canal water in Punjab had risen from nearly 22 per cent before the AAP government came to power to around 85 per cent. He also said the government would set up Union Public Service Commission coaching centres across the state to help young people prepare for civil service examinations.“Financial resources would never be a constraint if the government's intentions were clear and its priorities focused on public welfare,” he said.Targeting the Congress, Mann said the party remained preoccupied with internal differences and leadership struggles instead of raising issues related to Punjab's development. “Congress leaders are busy fighting among themselves and have nothing concrete to show for the state despite their long years in power. They must explain what tangible benefits they delivered to the people of Punjab,” he said.Mann also targeted the Shiromani Akali Dal, saying it had lost public confidence because of its past record. He criticised the Badal family's changing political positions, particularly in the BJP.Referring to the three contentious farm laws introduced by the BJP-led central government, Mann said farmers had been forced to undertake a prolonged agitation in which several of them lost their lives. “How can BJP leaders now seek votes from the very farmers whose interests were harmed by those laws?” he asked.“Any renewed political understanding between the BJP and SAD can once again put the interests of Punjab's farmers at risk,” Mann said. He also alleged that the drug problem had spread widely across Punjab under the SAD-BJP government from 2007 to 2017.Mann said voters should judge parties by their record on development and public welfare, while reiterating his government's claims of progress in jobs, education, healthcare, agriculture and welfare schemes.- Ends(With PTI inputs)