Chandigarh, October 25: The Punjab unit of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has sharply criticized Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) Convener Arvind Kejriwal, alleging he is more concerned with external ‘bus mafia’ interests than the safety of elderly Punjab residents.
State BJP President Kewal Singh Dhillon stated that Kejriwal is politicizing the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC)’s notice regarding safety concerns in buses used for the Chief Minister’s Pilgrimage Scheme. Dhillon highlighted that the NHRC has acted against 1,000 buses nationwide over the past year due to sleeper bus fire incidents, asserting that linking this action solely to Punjab is misleading.
He further claimed that the Punjab government informed the NHRC in January that no sleeper buses are registered in the state, implying that pilgrimage scheme buses are private vehicles from other states. Dhillon alleged that Kejriwal is operating the scheme like a ‘bus mafia’ through close associates from Delhi, bringing in both buses and personnel from outside Punjab.
Dhillon challenged Kejriwal to clarify if Delhi’s pilgrimage scheme was halted after the BJP formed the government there, before accusing others of trying to discontinue the Punjab scheme. Meanwhile, BJP leader Shwait Malik criticized the AAP government and Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann over the deteriorating healthcare system, pointing out that nearly 1,000 out of 2,098 sanctioned specialist doctor posts are vacant, with no regular recruitments since 2022, exacerbating the crisis for ordinary citizens seeking medical care.