Bathinda, April 26 (IANS): Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) President Sukhbir Singh Badal on Friday said Delhi-based parties were trying to capture Punjab in the same manner as done by the East India Company and urged them to vote for the Akali Dal to ensure peace and communal harmony as well as development in the state.
The SAD president, who interacted with members of the District Bar Association and taxation lawyers here, said "this is the most sensitive point in the history of Punjab".
"It is of utmost importance that Punjabis get together to save Punjab from Delhi-based parties who are only concerned about winning seats and least concerned about Punjabis or their problems.
"Punjab has suffered earlier also at the hands of national parties, but this time the situation is grave. Punjab is not only afflicted by a breakdown of law and order as well as communal tensions, but has been bankrupted by successive Congress and Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) governments. The situation is such that each and every section of society is suffering be it farmers, youth, poor or traders," he added.
Urging Punjabis to "save Punjab now before it is too late", Badal said: "SAD is the only answer to the ills afflicting Punjab," adding, "only a regional party can fight for your rights and keep you first".
In an attack on the AAP-Congress alliance in the state, Badal said: "AAP and the Congress are aligned in Punjab also like in the rest of the country. Only here they have not gone into an open alliance as they feel by doing so the anti-incumbency of the AAP government will affect both their chances."
Badal urged Punjabis to understand this and reject both the parties at the hustings.
When queried by the media, Badal said the manner in which the SAD was gaining in strength day upon day as well as the virtual close down of the election campaign of the Delhi-based parties proved that people understood that SAD alone could fulfill their aspirations.
"The forthcoming parliamentary polls will witness a historic verdict which will wipe out all the national parties in Punjab," Badal added.