Accusing the Punjab government of hushing-up a Rs 12,000 crore foodgrain scam, the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) on Sunday said it will protest against the government and Chief MinisterParkash Singh Badal in Chandigarh on Monday.

Party’s Punjab in-charge Sanjay Singh said that the scam is biggest ever foodgrain scam in Indian history and the state and centre governments were trying to cover-up the embezzlement.

“We challenge the Badals to tell the people of Punjab where Rs 12,000 went, whether it went in the pockets of Badals or in the pockets of officials. We demand a probe in the scam by the sitting judge of Supreme Court,” Sanjay Singh said.

AAP leaders even accuse the Punjab government and police of victimising its workers. Sanjay Singh said that Punjab police picked up its workers and booked them in false cases so that they are not able to join the state level protest on Monday.

“An Akali Dal leader murdered our party worker Dharmendra in Malerkotla. Navdeep Singh Vachoa, Seema Sirohi and Jaswant Singh were slapped with false cases and warned not to join the protest. The bus owners who were providing us the buses to ferry party workers to Chandigrh are also being victimised. I challenge Badals to arrest me, Bhagwant Mann and Sucha Singh Chotepur besides others and not to victimise our workers,” Sanjay Singh said.

Punjab convenor Sucha Singh Chotepur said that while the farmers were committing suicides and were not paid by the state government, Badals were spending lakhs of public money on advertisements saying AAP was maligning their image by raking up Rs 12,000 crore foodgrain scam.

AAP leaders claimed that more than 1 lakh party volunteers from various parts of Punjab will join the party’s protest which will begin at Mohali, on the outskirts of Chandigarh.

Meanwhile, the local administration has imposed section 144 in Mohali and Chandigarh where the AAP will hold a protest against the state government on Monday.