New Delhi, May 30 (IANS): Congress leader Pawan Khera on Thursday spoke on former Prime Minister Dr Manmohan Singh’s letter to the people of Punjab ahead of the final phase of polls and said that he was in ‘deep pain’ over the state of affairs under the current regime.

Speaking to the press, Pawan Khera said, “Dr Manmohan Singh is pained over prosperity under UPA being turned into ruins in past 10 years. We could feel the pain in his voice when we met him” and added that people can also feel the despondency in his letter.

He said that the UPA government under Dr Manmohan Singh touched and transformed the lives of all including the lower and middle class and also the underprivileged but what happened in the past 10 years under the NDA government is for everyone to see.

Former PM Manmohan Singh penned an open letter to the people of Punjab on Thursday and made an emotional appeal to make a conscious choice when the state goes to polls on June 1.

“With folded hands, I appeal to each one of you to give peace, love and harmony a chance and appeal to the young minds to vote with caution and vote for a brighter future. Only Congress can ensure a growth-oriented progressive future, where democracy and Constitution shall be safeguarded,” wrote the ex-PM.

In the three-page letter, he also criticised Modi government’s response to farmers protest (2021-22) over three farm laws and wrote, “As if the lathis and rubber bullets were not enough, none less than the Prime Minister verbally assaulted our farmers by calling them Andolanjeevis and Parjeevis on the floor of Parliament.”