Addressing a press conference organised on Wednesday, October 27 in Chandigarh, Former Chief Minister of Punjab Capt. Amarinder Singh announced that he will be forming a new party following his split from the Congress earlier in September. However, he did not disclose the name of the party, citing that his lawyers were still in the works with the Election Commission to officially finalise it.
Capt Amarinder Singh confirmed that his new political party will enter a seat-sharing arrangement with the BJP and that the symbol for the party had not been decided so far. Reciting his plans for the upcoming Assembly elections in Punjab next year, the former CM informed that his party will be contesting elections for all 117 seats.
Moreover, he dispelled the allegations made against him for jeopardising the state’s security, assuring that he wants peace in Punjab. The Former Chief Minister shed light on the security risks plaguing Punjab from outside the border, citing the collaboration of sleeper cells of the ISI and Khalistan as the main factor disrupting order in the state.
Singh claimed that the state’s security was under threat due to an increasing number of drone attacks. Drones have been used to supply weapons and drugs in the past, he said, disclosing that the new technology is also being used to drop explosives in the state.
In view of the rising drone attacks, he defended the Centre’s decision to expand the BSF jurisdiction from 15 km to 50 km, stating that the decision had been made as a protective measure against drone attacks in the state. “To say that enhancement of BSF is wrong is not fair. Nobody is taking over the states, he said.”
He asserted that it would be negligent for any state government to dismiss these security concerns. “Our state has been a battlefield too many times and now we have to be careful of clandestine warfare,” he said.
While speaking at the press conference, he also took the opportunity to defend his performance as the Chief Minister of Punjab and listed the achievements that had been made by the state under his administration.
During his term that spanned 4.5 years, Capt. Amarinder Singh claimed that he had followed through with 92 per cent of the promises made in his manifesto. “Only 10 promises could not be fulfilled as those were related to VAT,” he added.
Further, he clarified that he was not in contact with any farmers related to the protest movement on their request to have no interference from political parties. However, Singh revealed that he is in touch with Home Minister Amit Shah and is scheduled to meet with him on Thursday, October 28 to discuss the farm laws.
