Tarn Taran – Launching a scathing attack on the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) government, Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) Vice President and former Khadoor Sahib MLA, Ravinder Singh Brahmpura, today cited official documents to expose the state’s delayed response to the wheat procurement crisis. He accused the ruling party MLAs of indulging in mere photo-ops in grain markets (mandis) while farmers suffered due to the state government’s delayed paperwork in seeking procurement relaxations.Sharing official letters from the Food Corporation of India (FCI) and the Central Government on his social media, Brahmpura highlighted a clear timeline of administrative negligence. “The Punjab government initiated the request on April 9, FCI Punjab forwarded it on April 16, and the final approval from the Centre arrived only today, April 17. When there was no official approval till today, on what basis were the AAP MLAs giving assurances to farmers in the mandis? It was nothing but a photo session,” he stated.
He added that this exact administrative failure and delayed action triggered the recent fierce backlash faced by the local ruling MLA from distressed farmers in the mandis.
Making a major revelation based on the Union Food Ministry’s approval letter dated April 17, Brahmpura pointed out that while the Centre has granted relaxation in wheat specifications—allowing up to 70% for lustre loss and 15% for shrivelled grains—it has laid down a strict condition. “The letter explicitly mandates that any financial loss or operational cost arising from this relaxation will be the sole responsibility of the Punjab government. This has held the state government directly accountable,” he noted.
Brahmpura asserted that with the facts now on paper, the AAP government can no longer evade its responsibility by blaming the Centre. The SAD demanded that the state government immediately allocate funds from the state exchequer to ensure farmers’ wheat is procured without imposing any ‘value cut’ on their payments.
Issuing a stern ultimatum, Brahmpura warned, “If even a single rupee is deducted from the farmers’ accounts or if their harassment in the mandis continues, the SAD will launch a fierce agitation alongside the farmers.