Alleging that his chopper was not allowed to fly to Hoshiarpur and Jalandhar as it was declared a no-fly zone because of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's rally in Jalandhar, Punjab Chief Minister Charanjit Singh Channi said that he is not a terrorist. The chief minister further said Punjab is safe in our hands, adding that using investigative agencies for the Opposition will not work.
Consequently, he was unable to attend Congress leader Rahul Gandhi's election rally in Hoshiarpur.
Speaking to media persons, Channi said, "I was in Una at 11 am but suddenly permission to fly (to Hoshiarpur) was denied due to PM Modi's movement, it was declared a no-fly zone. I was not able to attend Rahul Gandhi's rally in Hoshiarpur. I had permission to land."
"This is our Punjab and this is safe in our hands. Charanjit Channi is a Chief Minister, he's not a terrorist that you are stopping him from flying to Hoshiarpur. This is not the way," he added.
"The elections should be conducted free and fair and using agencies (ED, CBI) against opposition will not work," he said.
Earlier on Monday, Punjab Pradesh Congress Committee Sunil Kumar Jakhar had alleged that Chief Minister Charanjit Singh Channi's scheduled visit to Hoshiarpur was cancelled by the Centre.
Addressing a public gathering in Hoshiarpur, Jakhar said, "Chief Minister Charanjit Singh Channi was scheduled to come to Hoshiarpur but it's shameful that the Central Government cancelled permission for him to come here."
"If the Election Commission of India does not take cognisance of this, I will understand that these polls are a farce, sham," Jakhar said.
The Congress leader said the Centre should shed some light on the incident.
"A few days back, the prime minister had said when he came to Punjab, he wasn't allowed to visit Ferozepur and there was a threat to his life. Today, when Charanjit Singh Channi is being stopped from coming to Hoshiarpur, I request PM Modi Sahab to shed some light on it," he said.
The prime minister's Ferozepur rally earlier had to be cancelled after a major security breach with his convoy stuck on a flyover after the agitating farmers had blocked the road. The BJP is raising the issue of the security breach of the prime minister in the ongoing electioneering in the state.
On January 5, Prime Minister Narendra Modi's convoy was stuck on a flyover for 15-20 minutes.
Assembly polls for electing 117 assembly seats in Punjab will be held on February 20. The results will be declared on March 10.
(With inputs from ANI)
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