State Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) working president Ashwani Sharma on Thursday sought an apology from Congress MP Rahul Gandhi over his “traitor friend” remark against Union Minister of State for Railways Ravneet Singh Bittu.Sharma said the incident proved that the Gandhi family’s thinking was the same as 1984. “Using such language against a Sikh leader from Punjab and a Union Minister exposes the real mindset of Congress. He alleged that from the time of India’s Independence till today, the politics of the Gandhi family has given Punjab only pain and wounds. The partition of Punjab, the attack on Sri Akal Takht Sahib, the anti-Sikh riots of 1984, and now the insult of a Punjabi leader are clear examples of this,” he wrote in a post on ‘X’.Referring to Gandhi’s “traitor” jibe at Bittu, Sharma said the people of Punjab were not traitors but patriots. He said it was because of their sacrifices that the Gandhi family enjoyed power for years before reiterating his call for an unconditional apology.AAP misleading farmersBJP spokesperson Pritpal Singh Baliewal accused the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) of misleading farmers on Indo-US trade deal. He denied any agreement being signed between India and the United States regarding duty-free trade of dairy or agriculture products. He alleged that the opposition was spreading misinformation by claiming that the proposed trade agreement would harm Punjab’s agriculture and dairy farming sectors, whereas in reality no final proposal has been prepared so far. He said the AAP government was creating an atmosphere of fear in the state without any supporting documents. He challenged the ruling party to produce a copy of any such agreement in public.The leader pointed out that AAP Rajya Sabha MP Rajinder Gupta had already described the agreement as beneficial, while Cabinet Minister Sanjeev Arora also said it was in Punjab’s interest.He said the contradictory statements clearly indicate that there was no clarity within AAP itself and that the party was using the issue to gain political mileage.
