The Punjab government on Monday said that it will file a case of intimidation and defamation against Akali leader Bikram Singh Majithia, for “threatening” IPS officer Kunwar Vijay Pratap Singh.
Punjab Advocate General Atul Nanda said the case will be filed in the court on Tuesday on the directive of Chief Minister Amarinder Singh, who had instructed the State government’s legal team to pursue the matter with the judiciary.
Pratap Singh is a member of the Special Investigating Team (SIT) set up by the Punjab government last year to probe the 2015 sacrilege and the subsequent police firing incidents at Kotakpura and Behbal Kalan wherein two protesters were killed.
Mr. Amarinder made it clear that he would not tolerate such threats and intimidation of his officers by the Akalis or anyone else.
“The Akali leaders had the habit of threatening anyone who dared to go against them,” he said, pointing out that they had earlier too used offensive language against Justice Ranjit Singh, who headed the Commission that inquired into sacrilege cases.
‘Shows desperation’
The Chief Minister, in a release, said the alleged threatening language used by Mr. Majithia against Pratap Singh in a TV interview showed the desperation of the Akali leaders, given the fact that the IGP was all set to get back into the SIT and resume the probe against into the 2015 sacrilege and police firing incidents.
The Election Commission had on April 8 directed the Punjab government to divest Pratap Singh of his charge as IGP (crime) for “violating” the model code of conduct.