The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) and its Punjab Government strongly condemned fresh ED (Enforcement Directorate) raids on traders in Punjab on Tuesday, revealing that central agencies are being used to target and intimidate the state's business community. Describing traders as the backbone of Punjab’s economic growth, the Punjab Government reaffirmed its support for them.
Meanwhile, AAP National Convenor Arvind Kejriwal called out the BJP-led Centre for harassing Hindu traders through repeated ED action. The party asserted that Punjab’s traders should not feel intimidated and said the entire state and the Punjab Government stand firmly with them.
AAP National Convenor Arvind Kejriwal took to ‘X’ and stated, “The ED Party is once again conducting ED raids on Hindu traders in Punjab on Tuesday. The ED Party is harassing small Hindu traders in Punjab. My appeal to all traders is that there is no need to panic. The entire Punjab and the Punjab Government stand with you. Together, we will take on the ED Party.”
Commenting on the ongoing discussion regarding a possible alliance between the Shiromani Akali Dal and the BJP, Arvind Kejriwal said, “I have heard that the ED Party is extremely eager to form an alliance in Punjab with the Sacrilege Party/Chitta Party, but the ‘Beadbi (sacrilege) Party / Chitta Party’ is not giving them any attention.”
Meanwhile, taking on the Congress, he stated: “Why is Congress getting so hurt by my speaking out against the ‘ED Party’ and Beadbi party / Chitta party? Congress has openly come out in their defense.”
Meanwhile, Punjab CM Bhagwant Singh Mann said, “Punjab’s Hindu traders are the backbone of our state’s economic development and have made a tremendous contribution towards building a ‘Rangla Punjab’. The ED Party wants to harass our traders by misusing central agencies. Through such actions, they are trying to exert political pressure and compel them to join their side, something that Punjabis will never tolerate. We stand firmly with our traders.”
On the other hand, senior AAP leader and Punjab Prabhari Manish Sisodia added, “Traders have been ruined through ED raids and young people through examination scams. Modi Ji, you are truly remarkable. But the country needs an innovation economy, not an ED economy. The truth about the economy cannot be hidden for long through polished speeches and media management.”
Citing economic indicators, he said, “For the first time in 26 years, Indian companies have dropped out of the top 10 companies in the MSCI Emerging Markets Index. The MSCI Emerging Markets Index is among the world’s largest investment benchmarks. Hundreds of billions of dollars from global funds are invested based on this index. And where is global capital going? It is flowing towards AI, semiconductors, future technologies and companies such as TSMC, SK Hynix and MediaTek, which are moving ahead.”
Manish Sisodia further said, “But in India, instead of encouraging new ideas, new technologies and new enterprises, an entirely different model is being followed. Whenever a company begins to grow, first an ED raid is conducted, then donations are extracted for the party. The result is that investment is declining. Fewer new jobs are being created. Opportunities for well-paying jobs are shrinking.”
