Will not allow BJP's moves to stop free ration of 55 lakh needy people of Punjab to succeed: MLA Kulwant Singh and Kuljit Singh Randhawa.

Sahibzada Ajit Singh Nagar, August 24: Supporting the stand taken by Chief Minister Sardar Bhagwant Singh Mann against the BJP-led government at the Centre for taking away the facility of free ration of 55 lakh needy people of Punjab on the basis of EKYC and other conditions, Mohali and Dera Bassi MLAs Kulwant Singh and Kuljit Singh Randhawa today said that BJP's moves to stop free ration of needy people will not be allowed to succeed and it will be opposed on every platform.

Sahibzada Ajit Singh Nagar, August 24: Supporting the stand taken by Chief Minister Sardar Bhagwant Singh Mann against the BJP-led government at the Centre for taking away the facility of free ration of 55 lakh needy people of Punjab on the basis of EKYC and other conditions, Mohali and Dera Bassi MLAs Kulwant Singh and Kuljit Singh Randhawa today said that BJP's moves to stop free ration of needy people will not be allowed to succeed and it will be opposed on every platform.
While talking to the media at MLA Kulwant Singh's office in Sector 79 in Mohali today, these two MLAs said that injustice will never be allowed to be done to the needy and poor people of Punjab, who feed the country with foodgrain production. On this occasion, Punjab Water Supply and Sewerage Board Chairman Dr. Sunny Singh Ahluwalia and District Planning Committee Chairperson and District AAP President Prabhjot Kaur were also present.
MLA Kulwant Singh said that the Center started this push by stopping free ration of 23 lakh people of Punjab in July and now from September 30, the sword is being hung on the facility of free ration of 32 lakh more people.
In this way, a total of 55 lakh people are being deprived of their due rights. He said that by doing this, the ration card of one out of every three families in the state is being cut off and the bread is being snatched from the plates of 55 lakh people.
Terming this as the anti-people mentality of the BJP, he said that the BJP-led central government wants to punish the people of Punjab for not coming under pressure. He said that this conspiracy to stop free ration on the pretext of unnecessary conditions will never be allowed to succeed.
He said that this attempt to deprive the needy people from the distribution of free ration on the basis of ownership of four-wheelers, government job, small land and income will never be allowed to succeed by the government of Punjab Chief Minister Sardar Bhagwant Singh Mann, even if it means holding protests for this.
He said that a demand has been sent to the central government to give another 6 months to complete the eKYC so that the verification of these 55 lakh people can be completed and their free ration facility can continue.
MLA Derabassi Kuljit Singh Randhawa said that Punjab has been fighting in every crisis faced by the country. From making sacrifices for the country's independence to filling the country's food grains and protecting the borders, the contribution of Punjabis is exemplary. He said that the value of this contribution will never be allowed to be in the form of such injustice to the people of Punjab.
He said that out of 1.53 crore beneficiaries, EKYC verification of 1.29 crore beneficiaries has already been done and 6 months time has been sought from the Centre for verification of the remaining beneficiaries. He said that the Bhagwant Singh Mann government will neither let the Centre snatch bread from the plates of the needy people of Punjab, nor let the fire of their stoves go out.
He said that if Punjab is making the country self-reliant in food grain production, then the Centre should not have the misconception that every resident here will be prosperous. Many people in Punjab are still in need, who are in dire need of government facilities.
Both the MLAs, while coming together, strongly criticized the BJP for its alleged vote theft, illegal data collection and now ration theft activities, saying that the Punjab government is committed to protecting the interests of its people and will take all possible steps to protect the interests of the people in the face of the Central government's stubborn attitude.