Observing ground realities from air not enough: AAP-LIP

Sukhpal Singh Khaira, AAP leader and leader of opposition in Punjab Vidhan Sabha. Express photo by Jaipal Singh

The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) and its alliance partner Lok Insaaf Party (LIP) have hit out at Chief Minister Captain Amarinder Singh for his social media post on observing illegal sand mining taking place while travelling in a helicopter. State co-president of AAP, Aman Arora, the CM needed to do more than just observe the ground realities of the state from air. “It is a matter of mirth that something which is known to almost every citizen of the state has come to the knowledge of the Chief Minister only when he was flying in a chopper. Our party has been raising the issue of illegal mining for the past one year and yet the government has only been jolted into action when the top functionary of the government saw it with his own eyes,” he said.

Arora said that the Chief Minister ventures out from his residence on very few occasions and is therefore not conversant with the menace of illegal mining. “Let him give the helicopter to our party for detecting illegal sand mining and we will show him how it is being done blatantly in almost every corner of Punjab,” he said. The Leader of Opposition, Sukhpal Khaira, said, “This vindicates our party’s stand. It also proves that long-term measures need to be taken to fight this menace and it cannot be brought under control by just observing it from helicopters.”

Simarjit Singh Bains, the president of LIP, said the action ordered by Amarinder was nothing but a sham. “It is the coterie of the Chief Minister which is involved in the illegal sand mining and they all will go scot free. The action ordered by the CM will be taken only against the hapless owners of the trucks which have been hired to ferry the sand. The big names will not be touched and no FIR will be registered against them,” he said.

Meanwhile, Capt Amarinder’s Facebook post on him observing the illegal mining taking place drew several sarcastic comments on his Facebook wall. Comments were made pointing his attention towards illegal sand mining taking place in various areas in Pathankot, Gurdaspur, Ferozepur and other area and asking him to visit those places too in his helicopter. His attention was also drawn to the alleged involvement of some local Congress leaders and MLAs in the illegal sand mining in various districts.