Punjab CM hospitalised, Oppn questions his whereabouts (Lead)

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Chandigarh, Sep 18 (IANS) Amid media reports that Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann has been hospitalised in New Delhi, the Opposition questioned his whereabouts and “misuse” of public money on his travel expenses, besides wishing him a speedy recovery.

However, there has been no statement either by the party or the government over the media reports. Mann is reported to have been admitted to a leading private hospital in Delhi.

Shiromani Akali Dal leader Bikram Singh Majithia alleged that Chief Minister Mann had consumed liquor illegally during a chartered flight from Delhi to Chandigarh due to which he fell down on the tarmac after alighting from the aircraft. He demanded an appropriate probe into the case.

Talking to the media in Patiala, Majithia claimed, “The Chief Minister partook liquor along with his OSD during the flight from Delhi to Chandigarh.”

Professing that the Chief Minister was tense for the past two days after party supremo Arvind Kejriwal informed him that he would also have to resign, Majithia said, “This could have been the trigger point for the subsequent liquor binge. Punjabis are witness to how the Chief Minister was in an inebriated state during his interview with an electronic channel one day earlier.”

Stating that the Chief Minister was taken back to Delhi in a chartered plane which he described as a criminal waste of state resources, Majithia said, “The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) government must explain why he was not admitted in any hospital in Chandigarh or Punjab? The reason is simple. If the Chief Minister had been admitted to any state hospital, the truth would have come out that he had fallen down under the influence of liquor.”

The SAD leader said in a statement that this was not the first time the Chief Minister had made a spectacle of himself under the influence of liquor. He said earlier Mann was de-boarded from a Lufthansa flight because he was inebriated.

Taking a jibe over the claims of the AAP governments in Punjab and Delhi for the best state-run hospitals and clinics, Punjab Congress leader Partap Singh Bajwa wrote on X, “CM @BhagwantMann and former Delhi CM @ArvindKejriwal have repeatedly claimed that government hospitals in Punjab and Delhi are at par with private ones.

“Yet when it comes to their own health, CM Mann opts for a private hospital in Delhi! The hypocrisy is staggering. It’s clear now that these so-called ‘champions of the common man’ have been misleading the public with their tall claims.

“The reality is far from the picture they’ve painted. AAP’s promises are nothing more than political theatrics, and the people of Punjab and Delhi deserve better. The cat is finally out of the bag -- Kejriwal and Mann are compulsive liars who’ve failed to deliver.”

Praying for his swift recovery, Leader of Opposition Bajwa said, “As he (Mann) grapples with recurring health issues, including those affecting vital organs like the liver, it’s a stark reminder that while his personal health is crucial, Punjab’s health has deteriorated beyond repair under his leadership. A sensitive border state like ours demands full strength -- physical, mental, and political.”

--IANS

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