Punjab BJP chief slams CM Mann for '€˜petty politics'€™ in name of Guru Ravidas

He said Prime Minister Narendra Modi was well aware of the sentiments of the people of Punjab and that is why during his Punjab visit in 2024, he announced that the Adampur Airport would be named after Guru Ravidas.

Punjab BJP chief Sunil Jakhar on Thursday slammed Bhagwant Mann, accusing him of indulging in petty politics in the name of Guru Ravidas and saying such behaviour does not befit someone holding the office of the chief minister. He said Prime Minister Narendra Modi was well aware of the sentiments of the people of Punjab and that is why during his Punjab visit in 2024, he announced that the Adampur Airport would be named after Guru Ravidas. Now that the prime minister is coming to formally name the airport, Mann has started indulging in cheap politics instead of welcoming him, Jakhar alleged in a statement here. Mann on Wednesday urged Modi to name the Adampur Airport after Guru Ravidas. The prime minister is visiting Dera Sachkhand Ballan in Jalandhar district on February 1 on the occasion of Guru Ravidas Jayanti. Jakhar said though the Union Budget is to be presented in Parliament on February 1, PM Modi is coming to Punjab on the occasion of Guru Ravidas' 'Prakash Purab'. It is surprising, he said, that the chief minister is still unable to understand or respect the prime minister's reverence, he said. Jakhar recalled that when the prime minister visited Hoshiarpur on May 23, 2024, he announced in his speech that the Adampur Airport would be named after Sri Guru Ravidas. Jakhar said now when Modi is coming to Punjab to formally name the airport after Sri Guru Ravidas Ji and when the Prime Minister's Office has already officially released the programme for the airport's naming ceremony, the chief minister has resorted to ''petty politics'' by tweeting and demanding that the airport be named after Guru Ravidas. He alleged that such small-minded politics does not suit a person occupying the chief minister's chair, especially when the prime minister's visit has already been scheduled, the announcement has already been made and it has already been decided that the naming will take place, yet the chief minister tries to mislead people by tweeting an already fulfilled demand. Jakhar said he would have supported the chief minister going above party lines had he genuinely raised any new demand in the interest of Punjab. But it is unclear what the chief minister is trying to prove by repeating a demand that has already been announced, he said. The state BJP chief said Modi has always listened to and accepted Punjab's demands on a priority basis and this particular demand had already been fulfilled through an earlier announcement. He added that the people of Punjab today are looking towards the BJP with great hope because the AAP government has pushed the state into ''decline'' on every front. This is what the chief minister cannot tolerate -- that people are increasingly turning towards the BJP, he claimed.

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