Rohtak, Sep 25 (IANS) Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) President Sukhbir Badal on Thursday appealed to the people to bring regional parties back to power while asserting that they alone were capable of looking after the interests of the farmers and the poor.

Addressing a public gathering named Samman Rally here on the occasion of the 112th birth anniversary of former Deputy Prime Minister Chaudhary Devi Lal, the Akali Dal President said national parties do not think about the welfare of the farmers or the poor.

“They create divisions in the name of religions and caste. It is time for the farmers and the poor to get together and take a solemn pledge to support the Indian National Lok Dal in Haryana to ensure the interests of the peasantry are protected,” he said.

Besides Badal, the event in Haryana’s Rohtak, the stronghold of former Chief Minister and Congress leader Bhupinder Hooda, saw the presence of Jammu and Kashmir Deputy Chief Minister Surinder Kumar Choudhary, Telangana lawmaker K. Kavitha, daughter of Telangana’s first Chief Minister K. Chandrashekar Rao, Congress leader Sampat Singh, among the key political figures.

Giving the example of Punjab, Akali Dal chief Badal said: “Punjabis decided to experiment with the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) in 2022. Today the results are there for all to see. In the floods neither the AAP government nor the Centre came to the aid of Punjabis leaving them to fend for themselves.”

Asking people to stop experimenting and to bestow their mandate to regional parties, Badal said: “We stand for development of rural areas but national parties are only interested in the welfare of industrialists and never think about coming to the aid of distressed farmers.”

Asserting that INLD president Abhay Singh Chautala was the true voice of the farmers and the poor, Badal said: “He is also the true heir to the legacy of Chaudhary Devi Lal.”

He also spoke about the unique friendship between Chaudhary Devi Lal and his father Parkash Singh Badal, now late. Describing the two as more than real brothers, the Akali Dal President said the friendship had also strengthened the bond between Punjabis and the people of Haryana.

“Let’s strengthen this bond even more in the days to come,” he added.

This was the first time that the INLD hosting the rally in the absence of party’s supremo and former Chief Minister, Om Prakash Chautala, who passed away in December last.

–IANS

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