'Royals' called us 'malangs', we ousted them from power: Mann in Tarn Taran

PATTI (TARN TARAN): Punjab chief minister Bhagwant Singh Mann on Friday asked the people of Khadoor Sahib parliamentary constituency to recognise the “royals and influential figures” who had been allegedly plundering their wealth and playing with their emotions and sentiments only to ignore and neglect them.
Mann was addressing a rally here in support of party candidate Laljit Singh Bhullar.

He assured that the next govt at the Centre would be formed with the support of AAP , and Punjab would then receive its rightful share. He also sought an apology for the alleged objectionable remarks made by the party candidate in the recent past.

He said that the previous rulers in Punjab lacked grassroots-level contact with the people. “They were royals , and they used to call us ‘malang’ (carefree and detached from worldly concerns), but it was these ‘ malangs ’ who ultimately ousted them from power.”

He alleged that the previous rulers had plundered Punjab of its wealth. “They owned fleets of buses and secured contracts for activities like sand mining, running wine shops, and managing eateries,” he said. Focusing his attention on the previous regime, he said the leaders would win elections, but the public would feel defeated. They would visit the people for only 20 to 25 days ahead of elections to secure victory, but for the rest of the nearly five years, the public’s requests for appointments would go unanswered despite being made with folded hands.

The CM said that the common mindset of traditional politicians in opposition parties was that they sought to purchase votes for Rs 2,000 to Rs 3,000 using their wealth.


He said, “PM Narendra Modi is apprehensive of the AAP’s rapid rise in just 10 years. We have govts in Punjab and Delhi, a majority in the Delhi municipal corporation, 10 members in the Rajya Sabha, five MLAs in Gujarat, two MLAs in Goa, the mayorship in Chandigarh, and Sangroli in Madhya Pradesh. Modi fears that we are expanding rapidly like a tornado and could potentially outpace the BJP. Therefore, the party decided to imprison our leader, Arvind Kejriwal. This decision, however, proved to be their biggest mistake. Kejriwal is now a household name, and his ideology resonates everywhere.”

On farmers’ issues, Mann accused the BJP-led central govt of neglecting their interests. He pledged to continue advocating for farmers and ensuring justice for them. He emphasised the need for AAP to strengthen politically. “For this, I need 13 arms so that AAP becomes stronger politically. I will compel the Central govt to grant Punjab's rights, all you need to do is send all 13 MPs to the Lok Sabha,” he said.