NEW DELHI: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday targeted Punjab’s ruling Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) over several issues at a rally in Jalandhar, months ahead of the state assembly elections due early next year.Accusing AAP leaders of corruption, PM Modi called it a “Kattar Beimaan Party” (staunchly dishonest party) — a jibe at AAP national convenor and former Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal’s description of it as a “Kattar Imaandaar Party” (staunchly honest party).“In Punjab, the health minister was sacked over bribery allegations. Another minister faced a money laundering case. Their MLAs are being caught taking bribes. There are very few among them,” the prime minister said without naming the AAP.“The party ruling in Punjab is now known as Kattar Beimaan Party,” he added.PM Modi further remarked that Punjab’s law and order situation was in “shambles.”“Law and order in Punjab is in shambles today. No one can predict when or where a gang war might break out or from which direction bullets might start flying. Even police stations are not safe as they are frequently attacked,” the prime minister said, apparently referring to the February 2023 attack on a police station in Amritsar by supporters of pro-Khalistan leader Amritpal Singh.Amritpal Singh is currently lodged in a jail in Assam’s Dibrugarh. He contested the 2024 Lok Sabha elections from jail and won the Khadoor Sahib seat in Punjab.Meanwhile, the PM also addressed the conviction of former AAP councillor Tahir Hussain, who was found guilty of murdering Intelligence Bureau (IB) officer Ankit Sharma during the February 2020 Delhi riots.“Just 2-3 days ago, a Delhi court convicted one of their leaders. He stands accused of inciting riots and murdering an IB officer; and look at their brazenness… they are questioning the court’s judgment, viewing it through the prism of religion and faith simply because their vote bank is at stake,” the prime minister stated.He also appealed to voters to bring the BJP to power in the state, saying the saffron party would work towards building a “developed and prosperous” Punjab.
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