Punjab Chief Minister Amarinder Singh arrives at the Vidhan Sabha in Chandigarh on Tuesday on the last day of the monsoon session. (Express Photo/Kamleshwar Singh)
Punjab Assembly Speaker Rana K P Singh Tuesday formed a committee under the chairmanship of minister Sukhjinder Randhawa to ascertain the veracity of the allegation levelled by SAD president Sukhbir Singh Badal that CM Amarinder Singh had held a meeting with radical Sikh preacher Baljit Singh Daduwal at his official residence.
In turn, the CM called Sukhbir Badal “master of disinformation”. He also disputed Sukhbir’s claims of mobile phones of the visitors of the meeting having been located at the same mobile tower, saying the tower Sukhbir mentioned did not even exist.
On the photograph showing him with Daduwal, which Sukhbir had waved, the CM said it was clicked during a meeting with a delegation that came to meet him at Punjab Bhawan. “It was an open meeting in Punjab Bhawan which was covered widely in media. What is there to hide in it,” asked Amarinder. He said the delegation had consisted of leaders from different political parties, such as UAD, SAD (Mann), SAD (1920), who had come with a charter of demands, including detection of sacrilege cases and arrest of those involved in sacrilege/desecration, release and transfer of TADA detainees in jails both in Punjab and outside despite having served their sentences, among other things. Daduwal came along with the delegation, he said.
Punjab Chief Minister Amarinder Singh with Cabinet Minister and MLAs on the last day of the Assembly session (Express Photo/Kamleshwar Singh)
Sukhbir countered the CM saying his party had not raised the issue of any old meeting held at Punjab Bhawan but had asked why the CM met Daduwal day before yesterday.
Amarinder said many people came and met him and took photographs. “I do not know who is whom. You can make four ‘hatte-katte’ Jathedars of your party of same build and physique that of Daduwal stand with him and I will still not be able to recognise him,” he said.
The exchange continued. “CM saheb, you are very senior to me. I am very junior to you, but you must answer. You also send your ministers to meet Daduwal, hold meetings. Who are these people? They are Khalistan sympathisers. The conspiracies are now being exposed,” Sukhbir said.
Amarinder said Akalis were lying and the committee could examine the CCTV footage of his residence. “Now, they are saying the meeting took place at the residence of Chanan Singh Sidhu. I do not understand why you people lie all the time,” he said.
AAP MLA H S Phoolka came to the aid of the Chief Minister and said that there was nothing wrong in Daduwal meeting Amarinder. “Dera premis (followers of Dera Sacha Sauda) had planned to kill Daduwal and this has been revealed in a Special Investigation Team report. He can come to the CM and talk to him about it. They have now started supporting Dera people,” he said, attacking the Akalis.
The Akalis, however, continued to protest in the well of the House and scattered the pages of the Justice Ranjit Singh Commission report before walking out. AAP MLA, Kultar Singh Sandhwan, got up from his seat and picked up the pages saying that disrespect had been done to Guru Granth Sahib as its name was mentioned 92 times in the report.
Sandhwan demanded that a resolution condemning the Akalis for “desecrating the report” should be passed. The House unanimously passed the resolution, which was moved by Leader of the Opposition Harpal Cheema.