The Aam Aadmi Party in Punjab on Saturday accused the BJP and Delhi minister Manjinder Singh Sirsa of trying to defame the state and its farmers through false claims about stubble burning, news agency PTI reported.
AAP leaders said the Punjab government had supported farmers with machinery, awareness campaigns and practical measures to manage crop residue. They claimed machinery worth more than Rs 800 crore had been provided to farmers.
Punjab Finance Minister and senior AAP leader Harpal Singh Cheema alleged that the BJP had always been anti-farmer and that its leaders had repeatedly demanded cases against farmers instead of acknowledging Punjab's efforts. He said the BJP was trying to threaten and malign those who feed the country.
Cheema said the Punjab government had been procuring stubble-management machinery and providing it to farmers for the past five years. These efforts and awareness campaigns had reduced stubble-burning incidents in the state to negligible levels, he claimed.
"Punjab's farmers are not burning stubble on the scale being portrayed by BJP leaders. The government has continuously provided machinery and made farmers aware of scientific stubble management practices.
Even if an isolated incident occurs somewhere, it cannot be portrayed as widespread stubble burning across the state," Cheema said.
In a post in Hindi and Punjabi on X on Friday, Sirsa criticised AAP, saying: "When the AAP government was in power in Delhi, everyone was responsible for Punjab's stubble, except them. Now the AAP government is in Punjab too, and the fires are raging even more than before. This isn't helplessness... It's the AAP government's incompetence. Delhi is still choking today."
Cheema advised Sirsa and other BJP leaders to stop making what he called false allegations against Punjab and instead address the situation in neighbouring BJP-ruled states, including Haryana and Uttar Pradesh.
AAP Punjab media in-charge Baltej Pannu accused BJP leaders of targeting farmers even before paddy harvesting had properly gathered pace.
He said recent rainfall had delayed harvesting, but BJP leaders had already started raising concerns about smoke supposedly reaching Delhi from Punjab.
"Paddy harvesting has not even gathered momentum, yet BJP leaders have started creating a drama about smoke reaching Delhi from Punjab. If fires have not even started on the scale being claimed, how has the smoke bypassed Haryana and reached Delhi directly? Is there some pipeline carrying smoke from Punjab to Delhi?" Pannu said.
Pannu said Punjab's progress in reducing stubble burning had also been acknowledged in Parliament, where a reduction of up to 80 per cent was noted last year.
He said the state government's provision of machinery worth more than Rs 800 crore showed its commitment to addressing the issue through practical support rather than threats and punitive measures.
"Despite Punjab's significant reduction in stubble burning and the government's sustained investment in machinery, BJP leaders continue to target our farmers. Instead of appreciating the progress made, they are choosing to pursue political propaganda against Punjab," Pannu said.
Pannu said attempts to portray Punjab as a state of "drug addicts" or "polluters" must stop. Such narratives insulted the people of Punjab and ignored the contribution of its farmers to the country's food security, he said.
The AAP maintained that Punjab had significantly reduced stubble burning through sustained investment, awareness and support for farmers, while accusing the BJP of using the issue to target the state and its farming community.
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With PTI inputs