Jalandhar, November 6

Reacting to the allegations levelled by Punjab Attorney-General APS Deol that PCC chief Navjot Singh Sidhu was obstructing the functioning of the government and his office, Punjab Education, Sports and NRI Affairs Minister Pargat Singh today took clear sides with the latter.

On the sidelines of a series of inaugurations in the city, Pargat said: “The AG should not have issued such a statement. But we will surely try to sort it out.” Sidhu had yesterday taken a strong stand, saying he won’t rejoin office till the AG was removed, which perhaps prompted him to issue a press release against Sidhu.

On the issue of differences and verbal spats between CM Charanjit Singh Channi and Sidhu, especially on the progress related to sacrilege cases, Pargat said: “This only shows there is internal democracy in the party. This will only strengthen the party. It is an internal matter. It will not be much of a problem and can be handled.”

Earlier, as Pargat held a series of meetings, including those with higher education officials and inauguration of road works, he showered praise on the working of Channi, perhaps taking a dual stand and balancing out with both leaders. Sidhu had yesterday said nearly 50 days had gone by without much to show. During an interactive session with residents of Urban Estate, Pargat, who is also general secretary of the PCC, issued a statement contrary to Sidhu’s stand and came out in Channi’s support. “The Channi-led government is leaving no stone unturned to give impetus to the overall development of the state,” he said. — TNS