During his visit to flood hit areas in Punjab, AAP leader Sanjay Singh demanded announcement of a relief package by the Centre, as well as Rs 60,000 crore that he claimed were due to the state. A state minister, on his part, has sought Rs 20,000 crore as relief. This is typical of AAP politics – exorbitant claims, the desire to get their hands on large amounts of public funds, and expenditure that eventually proves unaccountable. When Prime Minister Modi does make an announcement on a relief package, it will certainly not match up to AAP’s demands, so if there is any failure on the state government’s part on meeting the people’s expectations, the blame will be transferred to the Centre.
It was hoped that the Bhagwant Mann led government in Punjab would reflect the political ethos and local priorities of the state, but it seems to be dominated by leaders imported from Delhi. The latter seem to be more intent on throwing their weight around in Punjab ever since the ouster of the Kejriwal government. The fact that Chief Minister Mann is admitted to hospital is not helping.
The situation poses a problem for the Union Government as it not only has to take responsibility for rehabilitation of the state’s people, particularly farmers, but also ensure that the funds provided are not siphoned away in the Delhi fashion. This is also necessary from the point of view of restoring political stability in Punjab, which is greatly fractured and has been unable to back a forward looking and implementable mandate. It is likely that AAP’s not so impressive performance thus far may disillusion the electorate, and the state may be further politically fragmented.
The unfortunate truth is that Punjab is in need of major reforms to rejuvenate its economy. This is particularly so in agriculture which is trapped in unsustainable practices. Farming is largely dependent on regular increases in MSP and subsidies rather than improving productivity and introducing more viable crops. Industry has been stalled for a long time, with entrepreneurship at an all-time low, particularly in the emerging sectors. It is no wonder that the state’s youth are desperate to migrate to other countries. Unfortunately, while the entire country can recognise this problem, the people of Punjab continue to be misled by opportunistic leaders and divisive ideologies. AAP could have provided a viable alternative but, thus far, it has failed to do so. The increased role of the Sanjay Singh variety of leaders will not help, at all.
