Congress will be wiped out from Punjab: Sukhbir Badal

Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) chief Sukhbir Singh Badal on Friday here claimed that the Congress would be "wiped out" from the state in the Lok Sabha polls.

Sukhbir Badal's assertion came a day after Chief Minister Amarinder Singh said he would quit if the Congress performed poorly in the state.

"Wait for a few days. The Congress will be wiped out from Punjab. The chief minister’s wife Preneet Kaur and state Congress chief Sunil Jakhar will lose by huge margins," claimed Sukhbir Badal, who is in contention from Ferozepur.

Preneet Kaur is contesting from Patiala while Sunil Jakhar is trying his luck from Gurdaspur against actor-turned-politician Sunny Deol.

On Thursday, Amarinder Singh had said, "If the Congress is wiped out in Punjab, what do you think I will do? Obviously, I will accept the responsibility and resign.”

Lashing out at Amarinder Singh over poll promises, Sukhbir Badal accused the Congress-led government of "stalling" all development work and welfare schemes in the state ever since it came to power in 2017.

Stressing that the nation needed a "decisive" prime minister like Narendra Modi, Badal described opposition leaders led by the Congress as "confused".

"People will have to choose between confused leaders and a strong PM," said the SAD president.

On Amarinder Singh's charge that he and his wife Harsimrat Kaur Badal, who is a Union minister and sitting Bathinda MP, were "power hungry", the SAD president said, "How does seeking votes amounts to being power hungry? If that is the case then Amarinder Singh and his wife are both power hungry."

"In any case, the hunger for power is associated with royals like him, not with those who follow the democratic path," the SAD chief added.

Polling to 13 Lok Sabha constituencies in Punjab will take place on May 19.