Maghi mela a boon for AAP, MPs rally together for first time

It was perhaps the best Maghi mela for the state unit of the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) as all the four members of Parliament (MPs) Dharamveer Gandhi, Prof Sadhu Singh, Harinder Singh Khalsa and Bhagwant Mann, including the state convener Sucha Singh Chhotepur, rallied together for the first time and cleared air on the upcoming Delhi elections, drug issue and 2017 assembly elections in the state, in front of an enthusiastic crowd.

Gandhi, Professor Sadhu Singh and Khalsa criticised the ruling Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) and urged the voters to end politics of dynasty in the state.

"There is need to end dynastic politics of the father-son duo now. We have to challenge the oppressor as it has been preached by our gurus," said Gandhi.

Professor Sadhu Singh appealed to the youth of the state to join the party and criticised the government's inability to curb unemployment and inflation in the state.

Khalsa said that the Congress and the Akalis are hand-in-glove when it comes to saving each other. "Captain Amarinder Singh is very much responsible for the drug menace in the state. The whole drug problem started in the state under his regime. Captain in the past had urged that the state police and not the CBI should carry out the investigation in the drug issue and it was a mutual decision between Badal and Captain," said Khalsa. The leaders also criticised the growing influence of the RSS in the state. Speaking on the drug issue, the leaders said that the BJP and the Akalis are just fooling the people as one ally is opposing the other while the alliance is still intact.

But all the speakers had to cut their speech short as the crowd was eagerly waiting for Bhagwant Mann to take over the stage. Mann proved to be the crowd-puller as it was found that people left SAD's programme to attend Mann's speech. In his usual satirical speech, Mann claimed that AAP is confident of forming a stable government in New Delhi.

Taking a potshot at the Akalis, Mann hailed the audience and said that people voluntarily supported and attended the AAP's rally unlike the Akalis who gather audience by paying them money, liquor and drugs. He said, "The SAD's claim to wipe out the drug menace from the state is akin to Taliban claiming to end terrorism."

Mann claimed that BJP has virtually lost the election in Delhi as revealed by the small o number of people at Modi's rally. "BJP has roped in their PM with 300 MPs in Delhi to tackle Kejriwal," he added.