India, July 10 -- Punjab finance minister Harpal Singh Cheema on Thursday blamed the BJP for patronising gangster Lawrence Bishnoi, who is lodged in Sabarmati Jail of Ahmedabad since 2014.

"The recent murder of a businessman in Abohar was carried out by Bishnoi, who is in Gujarat jail. It is sad that he is targeting Punjab sitting in Gujarat," Cheema told mediapersons after the adjournment of the first sitting of the two-day special session of the Punjab assembly.

"The BJP is protecting gangsters, and he (Bishnoi) is lodged in a jail in Gujarat, the state from which Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the Union home Amit Shah come. Why does the BJP protect him? The gangster is executing targeted killings in non-BJP ruled states. Why is he ...