3 weeks ago

Congress criticises Punjab AAP over copyright strikes, paddy, mining

Congress criticises Punjab AAP over copyright strikes, paddy, mining
Pargat raises copyright strikes by AAP: ‘Gagging media, free speech’ · indianexpress.com

Some leaders who are not in power talked to the Punjab state government about problems they think need fixing.

They said the government is stopping journalists and other leaders from speaking freely online.

They also said some small hotels near bus stops, railway stations and colleges are being used for bad things, like drugs and blackmail.

The leaders want the police to protect young people from these criminal networks.

Other leaders warned that the state may not have enough space to store the new paddy crop that farmers grow.

Much of last year's paddy is still sitting in storage because there are not enough trains to carry it away.

If the paddy cannot be collected, farmers could lose money and face hardship.

The leaders also said that sand is being dug illegally from rivers.

Money linked to this illegal digging was found during searches by a government agency.

The leaders asked the government to fix all of these problems quickly.

Key facts

Legislature
Punjab Vidhan Sabha
Copyright strikes
Allegedly issued against journalists and opposition leaders over social media content
Unmilled paddy
About 30-40% of last year's paddy still in storage
Railway rakes
40-50 goods trains needed daily; only 4-5 received
ED search date
July 7, 2026
Locations searched
16
Cash recovered
Nearly Rs 1.75 crore; deposits of Rs 91.34 lakh frozen
Mining concerns
NGT sought a fresh progress report on a bridge damaged over the Sutlej river; court termed mining across the Ravi river a national security risk

Quotes

Pargat Singh

Punjab Congress Member of Legislative Assembly

“In a democracy, the Opposition has the right to express itself. If the AAP says restrictions on Kejriwal’s accounts amount to an attempt by the BJP to silence the opposition, then the same principle should apply in Punjab.”
indianexpress.com

Sources

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