Centre favouring Congress-led states at the cost of Punjab: Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal

SAMANA(PATIALA): The Centre was not performing its duty like a National Government as only Congress-led states were being favoured at the cost of Punjab, which always got "step motherly" treatment, Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal claimed today.

Emphasising the need to give full autonomy to the states, the chief minister said that today country needs a federal government structure in accordance with the Constitutional recommendations for the consistent development of all states and every citizen.

"Centre was not performing its duty like a National Government, there were only few Congress-led state governments which were being favoured by the Centre," Badal alleged.

Badal talked in length about his estranged nephew, PPP leader Manpreet Singh Badal.

He said there would be no impact of proposed electoral understanding of Manpreet's Peoples Party of Punjab with the Congress.

"He (Manpreet) and his party are a spent force as he was not able to win a single seat in the state in the recent assembly elections," Badal told reporters after a function organised here at public college.

He said that Congress's state president Amarinder Singh also has no mass base and a "big zero plus big zero" would have no impact on Punjab's politics.

"He (Manpreet) even did not listen to me before deserting Shiromani Akali Dal, we have given him Finance Ministry and he left the party," he said.

Badal was replying to a question that his nephew has been fighting for his survival in the state and has been approaching Congress for it.

"Now every one of his party has left him alone and I have no sympathy for him," he added.

When asked about his possible re-induction in SAD, he said that it was the prerogative of Sukhbir Singh Badal who was the president.

Regarding forthcoming general elections, he said that the well awakened public of the country would teach a lesson to the Congress-led UPA government for their "discriminatory, apathetic and anti-people" policies, which had enhanced inflation up to an "un-controllable" level in the country.

The chief minister, however, ruled out any reshuffle of his cabinet, and when asked about the induction of Bibi Jagir Kaur in his cabinet as she has got bail from Punjab and Haryana High court, he said that he would take advice of constitutional experts on it.

Asked about the vigilance action against former Patiala Deputy Commissioner Vikas Garg in a land case, he confirmed that file was pending with him and after examining so many things he would take appropriate decision on it.