With the cash-strapped Punjab government deciding to pay back the Rs.84 lakh deposited by former chief minister Rajinder Kaur Bhattal for overstaying in her government residence in Chandigarh, the Aam Aadmi Party on Saturday said this amount could have  saved many precious farmers lives from the clutches of suicide.

In a statement, leader of Opposition in Punjab Assembly and AAP legislator, Sukhpal Khaira said Captain Amarinder Singh government indulged in favoritism and nepotism, by paying back Rs 84 lakh penal rent levied on the Congress leader, Bhattal.

She had paid the penal rent to get the no-dues certificate from the state government to contest assembly polls on the Congress ticket from Lehra Gaga where she lost to Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) candidate Parminder Singh Dhindsa.

Khaira said this was a perfect example of wrong priorities and feudalism by Capt Amarinder Singh, particularly at a time when Punjab is facing colossal bankruptcy of Rs. 2.50 lakh Crore and its agrarian economy under a debt of Rs One lakh crore.

The AAP leader said Capt Amarinder could have used this Rs 84 lakh for writing off the debt of many small and marginal families saving them from the menace of suicides.

Khaira said while on one hand the finance minister Manpreet Badal is advocating shunning of a meal to help farmers tide over debt crisis, on the other hand cabinet is showering huge largesse upon a wealthy leader like Bhattal.

Demanding Capt Amarinder Singh government to review payback of Rs 84 lakh penalty to former CM, Khaira urged Bhattal not to accept this largesse showered upon her at a time when farmers were committing suicides for meager sums between Rs One lakh to Rs Three lakh.

He further stated that this feudal act of Capt Amarinder also amounted to promoting defaulters and encouraging politicians to break the laws, only to be compensated by public exchequer.

Khaira also accused Capt Amarinder of lying and misleading people on the burning issue of farm suicides. He said on his return from London, the CM downplayed the suicides by fudging data and claiming that only 131 farmers had committed suicides during his six month rule, which was less than the corresponding period of Badal rule in 2016.

Releasing a data chart collected by his office,  Khaira claimed that as many as 211 farmers had committed suicides and not 131 as being claimed by the CM.