Chandigarh: Haryana chief minister Nayab Singh Saini on Wednesday stepped up the BJP’s political pitch in Punjab, promising to build a “Viksit Punjab” on the lines of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s “Viksit Bharat” vision if the BJP comes to power.Saini made the remarks at his residence, Sant Kabir Kutir, where over 500 sarpanches, zila parishad members and functionaries of farmers’ organisations from various Punjab constituencies joined the BJP.He welcomed the new entrants by presenting them party scarves. Targeting the AAP govt, Saini claimed it had failed to fulfil even one of its 57 poll promises in five years, while asserting that the Haryana BJP govt had implemented 70 of its 217 commitments within 18 months.Saini also focused on youth employment and drugs, claiming more than two lakh youngsters in Haryana had secured govt jobs over the past 12 years without “parchi or kharchi”. He alleged Punjab’s youth faced discrimination in employment and remained caught in the drug menace.Highlighting Haryana’s sports and farm policies, Saini claimed the state was procuring all crops at MSP and had paid Rs 16,500 crore in crop-damage compensation over the past 12 years. He also cited Haryana’s sporting achievements as evidence of its development model.Pitching the BJP as an alternative in Punjab, Saini promised that a BJP govt would curb drugs, halt industrial migration, promote startups and restore confidence among the business community.“Punjab was once among India’s prosperous states,” Saini said, asserting that Haryana had moved ahead on development and that the BJP would seek to restore Punjab’s “trust and identity”.
