Chandigarh, August 24: The Punjab Congress Legislative Party (CLP), under the chairmanship of Captain Amarinder Singh, on Thursday decided to go on the offensive to take on the Akalis in the Vidhan Sabha on the Ranjit Singh Commission report on sacrilege cases.
The report is set to be tabled in the House during the monsoon session, beginning tomorrow.
The CLP, which met this evening to draw out its floor strategy ahead of the session, decided to entrust the task of leading the charge against the Akalis, whose government has been at the centre of serious charges of failing to solve the sacrilege cases, to the firebrand young brigade.
Vocal youth MLAs and firebrand senior leaders of the Punjab Pradesh Congress Committee (PPCC), including Navjot Singh Sidhu, Manpreet Badal, Sukhinder Randhawa, Tript Rajinder Singh Bajwa, Raja Warring, Kuljit Nagra and Kuldeep Singh Dhillon, have been asked to lead the debate on the report to corner the Akalis.
The meeting was of the view that the Congress should go all out against the Akalis over the issue of Balgari and other sacrilege cases, and the two incidents of police firing, at Behbal Kalan and Kotkapura that had led to deaths and injuries in the wake of desecrations. It was an election promise that the party was committed to fulfilling, the MLAs were vociferous and unanimous in noting.
Chief Minister Captain Amarinder Singh made it clear during the meeting that he would ensure that nobody found guilty of indulging in cases of sacrilege is spared. “We will not allow anyone incriminated in any case of religious desecration to go scot free, whoever he or she may be,” he vowed, declaring that nobody could be allowed to destroy the peace and communal harmony of the state.
Parliamentary Affairs Minister Brahm Mohindra said the session was extremely important in view of the scheduled presentation of the Justice Ranjit Singh Commission report. The Captain Amarinder Singh led government had promised to bring to book those seeking to create trouble in the state through desecration of the various religious texts and had fulfilled the same, said the minister.
Addressing the CLP meeting, PPCC president Sunil Jakhar Jakhar said this was a crucial Assembly session as it would script the political obituary of many, and would expose those who had exploited religion to divide the people for their political gains.
Whatever has come out in the media on the report exposes the Akalis, he said, asserting that being at helm of affairs, both Prakash Singh Badal and Sukhbir Badal could not escape their responsibility over the sacrilege cases that had taken place during their rule. The Congress would beat the Akalis and their leaders on the issue with concrete facts, said Jakhar.
It may be recalled that acting on the key recommendations of the Ranjit Singh Commission, the Punjab Police has already included the names of four police personnel in the FIR registered in the Behbal Kalan firing incident in 2015. The role of five other police officers is being investigated.
In the Kotkapura firing incident, a case under various sections of the IPC and Arms Act was registered earlier this month, and the Commission has recommended thorough investigation by an independent agency.
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