Sukhbir Singh Badal Urges Punjab Governor To Order Probe Against AAP Govt’s ‘Advertisement Scam’

The SAD chief also alleged that the government had used public funds for political advertisements in Himachal Pradesh and Gujarat during the recent assembly elections in both states.

Sukhbir Singh Badal has alleged AAP-led Punjab government of using public funds on advertisement

Source : Getty Images/PTI File Photo

Shiromani Akali Dal chief Sukhbir Singh Badal has urged Punjab Governor to order a probe against Aam Aadmi Party-led Punjab government over alleged use of Rs 300 crore of public funds on advertisements to fulfil its "political goals", reported news agency PTI. 

In a letter written to Punjab governor, Banwari Lal Purohit, the Shiromani Akali Dal chief said the Aam Aadmi Party had earmarked Rs 750 crore for government advertisements in the current financial year and has already spent a majority of this amount.

"Instead of spending this money to create awareness about government schemes in Punjab, the government had used the advertisements to promote AAP as well as its convener Arvind Kejriwal across the country," Badal alleged in a party statement.

"The government has thus not only violated the guidelines of the Supreme Court on usage of public funds for government advertisements but has also betrayed the trust of Punjabis," he said.

In his letter Badal stated that since the Delhi Lieutenant Governor had already taken notice of similar "wrongdoing" in Delhi and ordered a recovery of Rs 97 crore, the Punjab governor too should order a probe into the entire advertising spend of the state government on political campaigns so that this money could be recovered.

The SAD chief also alleged that the government had used public funds for political advertisements in Himachal Pradesh and Gujarat during the recent assembly elections in both states.

He said the entire process was "shrouded in secrecy" with the government refusing to even respond to an RTI query on its advertisement spend.

Meanwhile, Shiromani Akali Dal leader Harsimrat Kaur Badal on Saturday urged Civil Aviation minister Jyotiraditya Scindia to restore flights from Punjab to Maharashtra's Nanded Sahib, the last resting place of Guru Gobind Singh.

She said the Amritsar-Nanded Sahib flight had not been restarted after the Covid pandemic.

In a letter, Harsimrat said restarting the Amritsar-Nanded Sahib flight would facilitate pilgrims who were unable to take other forms of transport to visit the holy Takht.