Ahmedabad

Punjab Chief Minister and Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) leader Bhagwant Mann on Thursday alleged that there was no real Opposition present in Gujarat as the Congress and the ruling BJP were working together like a "joint venture".

Addressing a press conference here, Mann said, "There has been a BJP government in Gujarat since the last 30 years. But what have they done? Nothing significant."

"Congress here has completely collapsed. Sometimes it is difficult to tell whether it is Congress or BJP...It feels like both are running a joint venture together," he alleged.

During the Visavadar (assembly) bypoll, the Congress fielded its candidate to benefit the BJP, but despite that, Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) candidate Gopal Italia won the seat by a huge margin, he said.

"The Opposition never questions the government here. I have seen the first state where both parties are together," he said.

There has been no real Opposition in Gujarat, hence people are showing faith in the AAP as it raises people's issues, the Punjab CM said.

"If there is a farmers' issue, our state leaders reach there. If there is a tribal issue, our MLAs sit there until it is addressed," he said.

Mann said that for the first time in India, the Punjab government launched Mukhya Mantri Sehat Yojana (MMSY), enabling cashless treatment up to Rs 10 lakh per family per year in both - government and private empanelled hospitals in Punjab and Chandigarh.

"Every family in Punjab is entitled to a free medical treatment of up to Rs 10 lakh without any conditions. There is no income criterion, no green or yellow card, or any such requirement. Only an Aadhaar card is required. The registration process is currently underway, and many people have already registered," he said.

In Gujarat, even for minor illnesses, people have to travel to big cities like Ahmedabad, Vadodara or Surat, according to him.

"In Punjab, government employees and pensioners are also included in the health scheme. We have not imposed strict criteria because usually so many conditions are added to schemes that people never actually receive the benefits and these schemes remain only on paper," he said.

Talking about the Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana (PMAY), he said there were many conditions to avail the scheme.

"Under the PMAY, when people apply to build a house, they are told that since they already have a gas stove, they are not eligible. The same thing becomes a requirement in one scheme and a disqualification in another. The meaning is simple - if you want to give benefits, give them to everyone," Mann added.

According to him, after Delhi, electricity was now being provided free of cost in Punjab.

"Electricity of up to 600 units is provided free of cost. The bill comes once every two months, which means 300 units per month are free. There are no conditions. Even if you have two or three air conditioners at home, there is no issue. You just need to manage your usage so that the meter does not cross 599 units," he said.

Because of this, nearly 90 per cent of people in Punjab do not receive any electricity bill, he said, noting that power supply for agriculture purposes was already free.

Mann also claimed that his state has been taken out of the "Udta Punjab" phase, referring to the problem of drug addiction among youth.

"In Punjab, we initiated a drive against drugs, under which we seized thousands of kilograms of drugs and caught big fish involved in trafficking. We demolished their properties and assets in the state," he said.

He alleged that the Punjab Police have several times gone to Gujarat to seize drugs from ports and found narcotics worth Rs 20,000 crore being trafficked.

"We work with the Gujarat Police to catch drugs," he said.

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He said Punjab shares a 532-km-long border with Pakistan.

"Every day, drones come from the other side. We have deployed our own anti-drone system. We intercept them, catch them, and stop the movement of drugs," he said.