Amarinder Singh Hits Out At Akali Dal Chief Over His "Fixed Match" Charge On Farm Laws

Punjab Chief Minister Amarinder Singh on Thursday slammed SAD chief Sukhbir Singh Badal over his "fixed match" allegation, terming it as totally absurd, and accused the Akalis of playing the BJP's game to "ruin" the state's farmers.

"Who am I playing a fixed match with?" asked the Chief Minister.

After playing all those "fixed matches" with the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on the farm laws issue, Mr Badal seemed to have become "so obsessed" with the phrase that he had even forgotten that a fixed match cannot be played solo, the chief minister said.

Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) chief Badal had earlier accused the CM of playing a "fixed match" by deliberately delaying bringing in legislation in the Punjab Assembly to negate the farm laws.

"If anyone is playing a fixed match, it is the SAD, which continues to act at the behest of the BJP," alleged the CM in a statement.

The CM also derided Mr Badal's remark that the Akalis will compel his government to do anything, considering that, by their own admission, they had "failed" to persuade their own government at the Centre not to bring in the "anti-farmer" laws.

The Badals have made a "laughing stock" of themselves and their party with their "senseless statements and outrageously false claims" on the issue of the agricultural laws, he said.

He said SAD's own former ally, the BJP, had already publicly declared that the Akalis had fully supported the legislations from the day one.

"The Badals' lies and double standards had been totally exposed not just to Punjab and its farmers but to the entire nation," alleged Singh.

Pointing to the SAD chief's remark that he (CM) had rejected Mr Badal's suggestion on calling a special session for a state legislation to negate the farm laws, Singh said there was no question of accepting or rejecting a suggestion made after he himself had categorically announced that he was exploring that option.

"In any case, who is Sukhbir [Singh Badal] to give a suggestion to the state government after he openly refused to support us in rejecting the farm ordinances during the all-party meeting, and asked his MLAs to stay away from the Vidhan Sabha session at which we passed a resolution against them," asked the Chief Minister.