Chandigarh, September 9, 2026 (Yes Punjab News)
Punjab Cabinet Minister and senior Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) leader Barinder Kumar Goyal on Wednesday criticised Congress leader Rahul Gandhi over his remarks on the recent incident in Dirba, accusing the Opposition of politicising a tragic incident instead of respecting the sentiments of the affected family and local residents.
Responding to Rahul Gandhi’s post on social media, Goyal said the AAP government had taken decisive action against the drug menace in Punjab and questioned the Congress’ record on the issue.
“Rahul Gandhi, you have spoken about drugs and action against drugs, but I want to remind you that if any government has taken decisive action against drugs in Punjab, it is the CM Bhagwant Mann-led AAP government. Your party came to power in 2017 promising to eradicate drugs within four weeks. You had five years in government, what did you do during those five years?” he asked.
Goyal said the Bhagwant Mann government had launched an unprecedented campaign against drugs and claimed that its results were now visible on the ground.
He accused the Opposition of attempting to turn a tragic incident into a political issue, saying, “Earlier, you did politics in the name of religion and caste. Now, when those issues have failed, you have started doing politics over dead bodies. This is not the culture of Punjab.”
The minister said the affected family had decided to conduct the last rites of Gulzar Singh according to its own wishes, but Opposition leaders reached the spot and allegedly attempted to make the situation political.
He claimed that local residents opposed the presence of political leaders and asked them to leave, saying that a local committee had already been formed to handle the matter.
Goyal also alleged that the drug problem in Punjab was a legacy of previous Congress and Akali-BJP governments, while claiming that the present AAP government was working to dismantle the drug network.
“Rahul Gandhi, come to Punjab. Come to that village and see the situation yourself. Talk to the people and understand what they want and what they are saying. Sitting in Delhi and making statements does not reflect the ground reality,” he said.
The minister further said Opposition leaders routinely rushed to Punjab whenever an unfortunate incident occurred and alleged that they were left with no other issues to raise against the government.
“But the people of Punjab do not appreciate this kind of politics. Punjab believes in living together, maintaining harmony and Sarbat da Bhala,” Goyal said.
He reiterated that neither any AAP minister nor any MLA had any connection with the incident and urged Opposition parties to refrain from what he described as “dirty politics.”
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