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Scandal Characteristically Indian politics has started to flow towards deeps and there is no end in sight of this downfall. Scandals are coming to surface everyday in which, mostly, politicians are involved and these new revelations have surprised the people of the country. There isn’t any crime that our political leaders have not committed. It is a shame for the ‘mahan’ Indian democracy that murder, decoity and rape accused get elected as the Members of Parliament. A recent incident is the perfect example of it. It must be learnt that a NCP MP has been arresting for his involvement in a murder case. NCP leader Padamsinh Patil had been found to be involved in a big sugar mill scandal. Two social workers, Pavan Raje Nimbalkar and Anna Hazare had played an important role for the revelation of the scandal. When the scam was being investigated, Pavan Raje Nimbalkar got murdered. It must be learnt that at that time Padamsinh Patil himself was a minister in the NCP led state government of Maharashtra while another NCP leader RR Patil was the Home minister of the state. With it, it becomes evident that state police did not even file a FIR against Padamsinh Patil under the political pressure.

Arrest It must be learnt that Nimbalkar was a Congress leader but even the Congress Chief Minister of the state failed to provide justice to the family of the slain leader. At last the family of the slain leader, knocked at the door of the high court. High court had ordered CBI to investigate the case. After three years of investigation and arrest of the murderers CBI has arrested Padamsinh Patil . The murderers accepted that Patil had given them thirty lakh rupees as a supari for the murder of Nimbalkar. It has not ender here. He had even tried to give them the contract of killing famous social activist Anna Hazare but they refused because the assassination of such a famous leader could create law and order problem in the state and situation could slip out of hands. The surprising fact is it that Congress and NCP are alliance partners in the state and the centre government. In spite of all these facts Patil got Nimbalkar murdered who was his close relative also. These stories of moral degradation show that to what extent the characters of our leaders have fallen under the influence of political power.  After the arrest, Patil has started to behave like other arrested leader that he has been trapped because of political motives and his political rivals have intrigued against him.

NCP Padamsinh Patil ’s arrest is a big shock for the Maharashtra based Nationalist Congress Party government as well as for the UPA alliance government in Delhi. During its previous tenure the UPA government had to face the same situation because of Shibu Soren and now they are ashamed of because of Padamsinh Patil . The difference is only it that last time it had to face this situation after some years of the formation of government but this time the UPA alliance has not fully completed its ‘Bandar bant’ (distribution of departments) Process. NCP chief Sharad Pawar used to be the chief minister of Maharashtra during P V Narasimha Rao’s government in Delhi. It must be learnt that Rao used to say that the ‘Justice will take its own way’ in such matters. This time Sharad Pawar has repeated the exact words of Rao when he was asked for his comments on the issue of Padamsinh Patil’s arrest. His remarks indicate that he still hopes that Patil will escape the investigation because of some technical loopholes. In this situation all the eyes of the people of India are on Prime Minster Manmohan Singh to establish the rule of justice otherwise nobody can deny that Padamsinh Patil will escape the law by using his political power.

Government Decision All hopes of revival have ended for the closed sugar mills of Punjab. Badal led SAD-BJP alliance government has decided to sell the land of six closed sugar mills to the Punjab State Federation of Co-operative House Building Society for the construction of housing colonies instead of reviving these sick units. With it the dreams of thousands of employees and mill laborers of resumption of work have dashed. It must be learnt that former Co-operative minister late Captain Kanwaljeet Singh had dreamt of reviving the sick mills within the time frame of three months but his dreams too have been broken. Co-operative department has 15 sugar mills out of which, Faridkot, Jeera, Budhlada, Jagraon, Tarantaran and Rakhra based sugar mills have been closed for a long time because of government’s indifference. All the workers of these mills have been left jobless. Neither they have got their salaries for a long time nor have they been transferred to other governmental departments.

Allotment of Land In its 2007’s assembly elections manifesto the SAD-BJP alliance had promised to restart these closes mills. Late Captain Kanwaljeet Singh had promised to take immediate steps for the revitalization of these ill-mills. To keep his promise he had planned to establish electricity production units in these sugar mills to solve the financial problems of these mills. More than fifteen private companies had showed their interests in this new planning. An electricity production unite has already been established in Faridkot based sugar mill that was established in 1991. This unite produces the electricity worth two crore seventy lakh annually. But this mill, too, has been closed because state government has shown the deficit of seventy seven crore in the time of ten years. In spite of the planning of restarting production from these sick unites the state government has allotted the land of these mills to Housefed to construct big residential colonies. Faridkot based mill has 133 acres of land out of which 65 acres have been allotted to Housefed to construct residential colonies. Except it large chunks of land of the remaining five sick sugar units have also been allotted to construct residential colonies.

Economy of Punjab Except it the financial condition of the remaining sugar mills of Ajnala, Shaheed Bhagat Singh Nagar (Nawan Shahar), Batala, Morinda, Fazilka, Bhogpur, Kharar, Budhewal and Gurdaspur is also not satisfactory. Farmers have lost their interest in the production of the sugarcane because of transportation problems. On the other hand state government, too, is indifferent towards this small scale industry. Because of it most of the sugar mills could run only for 50-70 days during the peak season this year Sugar department MD Vinod Kumar said that large parts of these sugar mills have been sold for the construction of residential colonies but his department is very serious to revive and revitalize these closed sugar mills. Punjab government’s decision of selling the sugar mills’s land indicates that at one hand it is indifferent towards the economic interests of the farmers and on the other hand it is non-serious for the industrialization of the state.  Punjab is an agricultural state and most of its industry is agricultural based. It is a border state so private sector has not showed much interest in investing here. We must not forget the Nandigram like incidents. If in future some hopes of new industry rise then the land of these closed mills could be transferred for establishment of new industry. But SAD-BJP government’s decision indicates that they are not honest towards the people of Punjab.