Chandigarh: Haryana chief minister Nayab Singh Saini on Monday sought to put the BJP’s Punjab strategy in a sharper political frame, asserting that the party’s “real alliance is with the people of Punjab” even as speculation continues after SAD president Sukhbir Singh Badal’s recent meeting with Prime Minister Narendra Modi.Addressing a news conference in Chandigarh, Saini said the meeting should not be viewed only through an electoral lens. “The PM represents the aspirations and voice of 140 crore Indians. There is nothing unusual if someone wants to meet him,” he said. However, his remark that the BJP’s alliance was with Punjab’s people signalled the party’s attempt to project itself as an independent and expanding force in the state.Saini claimed that public confidence in the BJP was rising in Punjab and that people had realised development, employment, security and welfare could be ensured only through a “double-engine govt”. He claimed the party would form the govt in Punjab in the coming period.Training guns at Punjab CM Bhagwant Mann for being “more concerned about Haryana than fulfilling promises to Punjab“, Saini said: “Mann now sees the Haryana CM even in his dreams.”He accused the AAP govt of misleading people with last-minute announcements, asking why promised benefits were not provided from the first year. He contrasted this with Haryana’s decision to provide Rs 2,100 to eligible women, saying his govt honoured the commitment in its first Budget.Rejects claims of paper-leak gang in BhiwaniRejecting Mann’s allegation regarding a paper-leak gang in Bhiwani, the CM asked: “If the Punjab CM believes there is such a gang operating in Bhiwani, why does the Punjab govt not act through its own police?” He added that allegations without facts were irresponsible.The CM also hit out at the opposition, accusing it of spreading misinformation and speaking without facts. He said the younger generation must be reminded of Congress-era hardships, including long queues for LPG cylinders, while PM Modi had ensured direct and transparent delivery of welfare benefits into beneficiaries’ bank accounts.
