Days after Union minister Amit Shah slammed the “terror” of gang activities in Punjab, Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann on Monday lashed out at the Centre, accusing it of providing “VIP treatment” to dreaded gangster Lawrence Bishnoi in Sabarmati jail in Gujarat.
Mann said the government was more concerned about the safety of Bishnoi, as the Union home ministry has issued an order that he can’t be questioned by state investigating agencies anywhere except in the Gujarat jail.
“Union Home Minister Amit Shah himself spoke about the gangsters during his visit to Punjab, but Lawrence Bishnoi is being given VIP facility in Sabarmati jail in Gujarat,” Mann said while speaking to reporters on the completion of four years of the AAP government in Punjab.
Such “double standards” will not work, he said.
On March 14, Shah, during a rally in Moga, attacked the AAP government over various issues, including gangsters, the drug menace and religious conversions.
Lawrence Bishnoi is one of the main accused in the 2022 murder of Sidhu Moosewala.
Mann also said the police want to bring gangster Anmol Bishnoi for questioning in the Sidhu Moosewala murder case.
Replying to a question about bringing gangsters from abroad to face the law, Mann said his government was in touch with the home ministry and the external affairs ministry, adding that Red Corner Notices have been issued against criminals sitting in foreign countries.
He further said recently a gangster was detained at the Ukraine border and efforts were on to bring him here.
To a question on Shah’s promise of bringing an anti-conversion law during a rally in Moga, Mann slammed the BJP for wanting to provoke religious conflicts. “Wherever they form the government, there are inter-religion fights,” he alleged.
“Their (BJP) religious card won’t work in Punjab,” Mann said. He, however, added that religious conversions through “greed” are wrong.
The land of Punjab is fertile, where any seed can grow, but seeds of hatred cannot grow here, he said.
Shah said if the BJP forms the government in the 2027 assembly polls, it will bring a law to check illegal religious conversions in Punjab. He asserted that peace and development in Punjab were not possible without Hindu-Sikh unity, and “only under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, this unity is possible”.
Mann further slammed the Centre for “stalling” the state’s share of funds, claiming that Rs 8,000 crore of the rural development fund has not been released yet. The Punjab government has approached the Supreme Court in the matter, he said.
Mann said his government acts swiftly when it gets information about gangsters and criminals, emphasising that police have solved almost all cases. He accused Akali Dal and Congress leaders of patronising gangsters in Punjab.
“Akali leaders who do not even have a leadership in their party are now giving patronage to gangsters to offering election tickets to them. They are feigning ignorance about the gangster culture that flourished during their rule,” he alleged.
Mann said as the CM, he works the most, claiming he has filed at least 14,000 files so far.
Asked about the state agriculture policy, Mann said issues such as the minimum support price (MSP) and the India-US trade deal need the Centre’s attention before the policy can be released.