Amarinder's resignation self-admission of party's failures: Sukhbir

Chandigarh, Sep 18 (IANS) Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) President Sukhbir Singh Badal said on Saturday that Amarinder Singh's resignation from the post of Punjab Chief Minister is a self-admission on the part of the Congress and its high command that the party has failed to perform and has nothing to show in its more than four-and-a-half years of governance.

Asserting that this is a testimony to what the SAD has been stating all along, Badal said Amarinder Singh has been punished by nature for lying with 'Gutka Sahib' in hand and that every member of the Congress would suffer the same fate.

He said a mere change of guard would not save the Congress' sinking ship in Punjab adding that the entire state Cabinet as well as Congress MLAs are steeped in corruption and are running various kinds of mafia rackets, including sand, liquor and drugs mafias.

"The Congress cannot hope to save its incompetent government and befool the Punjabis with a mere change in face," the SAD chief said.

Badal said the devious ploy of the Congress high command to avert a backlash against the party by putting the blame on one person alone would not succeed.

"Punjabis know that the entire Congress in Punjab is known for open loot and lawlessness. Its ministers and MLAs patronised gangsters. Its ministers looted the state exchequer of thousands of crores of rupees. It failed to undertake any development or infrastructure projects in the state," he said.

Badal said Congress President Sonia Gandhi and the Gandhi siblings -- Rahul and Priyanka -- could also not escape responsibility for making Punjabis suffer for more than four-and-a-half years.

"First of all, Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi were the force behind the election manifesto of the Congress for the 2017 Assembly elections. The Gandhi family not only kept Amarinder Singh in power, but also failed to move against any of his corrupt ministers. It also failed to prevail upon Amarinder Singh to fulfil the promises made to the people. Amarinder's failure is the failure of Sonia Ganhi and Rahul Gandhi," Badal said in a statement.