Ludhiana: Punjab Assembly Speaker Kultar Singh Sandhwan has compared Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Union Home Minister Amit Shah to the demon figures Ravana and Kumbhakarna, drawing a sharp response from the BJP.
Punjab BJP general secretary Anil Sareen said Mr. Sandhwan had "lost his mental balance" and should seek treatment, and termed the Speaker's statement irresponsible and uncalled for. He was addressing the media ahead of Mr. Shah's visit for a briefing at the Punjab Agricultural University campus.
Mr. Sareen alleged that drugs were being sold openly in Punjab and were even being delivered to addicts' doorsteps "like pizza". He said that when drug hauls are recovered in Gujarat and major supply chains are busted, the Aam Aadmi Party leadership terms it a failure, but when drugs are sold openly in Punjab and those who raise questions are targeted, the AAP considers it a success.
He said Mr. Shah's visit comes at a time when Punjab is struggling with the devastating impact of drugs, while Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann is on a foreign tour. The BJP leader alleged that the AAP government had left Punjab to fend for itself, whereas the BJP stood firmly with the affected families.
Mr. Shah is scheduled to burn an effigy of Ravana — which the BJP has named "Chitte ka Ravana", or the Ravana of drugs — at the Daresi Dussehra ground in Ludhiana.
The exchange has sharpened the political confrontation in Punjab over the drug issue ahead of the State's Assembly elections, with the AAP government and the BJP trading charges over who is responsible for the menace.