Punjab Newsline, Chandigarh-
AAP's Response in Connection with BJP Allegations on Mining and said from 2007 to 2017, every form of mafia rule Punjab suffered was under the BJP and Akali Dal regimes. Whether it was the cable mafia, sand mafia, drug networks, or the transport mafia, this ecosystem thrived under their joint rule. Before that period, Punjab neither knew mining mafias nor heard of an organised sand mafia.
After the BJP and Akali Dal were ousted, the Congress moved in to protect their legacy of mafia rule. Since coming to power, AAP has focused solely on cleaning up the mess created by years of political patronage and criminal complicity.
The AAP government has enforced zero tolerance against illegal mining, as reflected in a midnight crackdown on December 26–27 that resulted in 20 FIRs, 15 arrests, and multiple seizures across Majri and Dera Bassi.
Backed by the Punjab State Mining Policy 2025, which legalises mining by landowners and mandates GPS tracking and CCTV surveillance, technology-led enforcement is systematically dismantling the mining mafia’s grip.
