Anil Joshi failed to solve dump issue during his tenure as minister: Gurjeet Singh Aujla

Amritsar, May 11

The fire incident at Bhagtanwala garbage dump has become a poll issue. Congress Lok Sabha candidate and MP Gurjeet Singh Aujla alleged that dump fire incident exposed former Cabinet Minister and Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) candidate Anil Joshi’s development claims. Aujla said the state government and Anil Joshi were directly responsible for this.

He said Joshi, who remained minister for 10 years, was not serious about the dump issue and that is why it could not be resolved. He said the public had responded to his false claims of development by defeating Joshi in the elections twice. Aujla said shifting of the Bhagtanwala dump was state government’s matter. Joshi was the Local Bodies Minister during the SAD-BJP regime and should have resolved it, he added.

Aujla said people residing near the dump were suffering from many diseases. He said Joshi gave a 25-year contract to the company for his own benefit. When the Aam Aadmi Party government came to power in the state, it did not conduct municipal corporation elections for two years due to which problems in the city piled up.

BJP candidate Taranjit Singh Sandhu today visited the dump site. He criticised the government for not shifting the dump. Sandhu said despite making tall promises, elected representatives had done nothing to solve problems related to the dump.

He said, “I can understand the seriousness of the issue. I will take up the matter on priority basis. If the state government fails to find solution to the problem, then the matter would be taken up with the Central Government and funds brought in to resolve the issue.”

Sandhu interacted with affected residents of localities near the dump. Residents told Sandhu that symptoms of many diseases were found during their medical check-ups. They claimed that it was difficult to breathe here. On the occasion, Sanji Sangharsh Committee members gave a memorandum to Sandhu.