Punjab: Ex-minister Sarwan Phillaur and son join SAD (Sanyukt)

CHANDIGARH: In another jolt to the incumbent Congress in Punjab, former jails minister Sarwan Singh Phillaur and his son Damanvir Singh quit the party on Monday and joined the Shiromani Akali Dal (Sanyukt).
A six-time MLA, Phillaur, who is a prominent face in the Doaba region, joined the SAD (Sanyukt) in the presence of party president and Rajya Sabha member Sukhdev Singh Dhindsa in Mohali.He was earlier with the Shiromani Akali Dal and had left it to join the Congress in 2016. Phillaur had resigned as cabinet minister in the SAD-BJP government on ‘moral grounds’ in May 2014 after his son’s name had cropped up in the multi-crore Bhola drug racket on the allegations of money laundering.
The Mohali CBI court had in October 2018 framed charges against Phillaur, his son Damanvir and others in a money laundering case registered by the directorate of enforcement (ED). Later the Supreme Court in January 2019 stayed the Mohali court’s proceedings against Phillaur.
“Leaders like them, despite their hard work, had no place and respect in the Congress as the Congress is only interested in minting money by exploiting Punjab and its resources,” said Dhindsa. Phillaur claimed all parties like the Congress and SAD are hand in glove with the drug, sand and transport mafias, who have eaten into the vitals of the state. Damanvir said that Vikramjit Singh Chaudhary was given the Congress ticket from Phillaur despite the fact that the Chaudhary family had lost the last three assembly elections.