SAD workers gatecrash into Cong Bhawan, damage entrance

Staging a protest against the Congress over allegations of politicising sacrilege issue on Thursday, Shiromani Akali Dal workers gatecrashed into Congress Bhawan and partly damaged its entrance.

Even as it was a planned protest, the Jalandhar police had not taken adequate measures to prevent the vandalism. SAD leaders, led by newly appointed Jalandhar district president (urban) Iqbal Singh Dhindsa, Jalandhar district president (rural) Bachitar Singh Kohar, SAD youth president Sarabjeet Singh Jhinjher, ex-MLA Baldev Khaira, ex-councillor Kuldeep Oberoi, Sukhminder Rajpal and circle in-charge, Jalandhar Cantonment, Harjaap Singh Sangha crossed the baricades, forced open the gates of Congress Bhawan and went inside.

Since there was no Congress worker or leader inside the premises at that time, no confrontation occurred. Police personnel had hard time to bring them all out of Congress Bhawan as they kept raising slogans against the party and its leaders.

The SAD workers had brought along an effigy which had pictures of party leaders pasted on it, including those of Sonia Gandhi, Rahul Gandhi, LoP Partap Bajwa and PCC chief Amarinder S Raja Warring. The leaders burnt the effigy outside Congress Bhawan while making statements against the Congress, especially targeting MLA Pargat Singh.

The SAD leaders said Pargat Singh had admitted it in the floor of the Assembly that some Congress leaders, in its previous regime, had deliberately delayed justice in the sacrilege case for political gain. Kohar said, “The Congress MLA should tell people who was the leader in their government who politicised the issue of sacrilege for five years."

The SAD leaders termed the Congress anti-Sikh. “From the 1984 Sikh massacre to Operation Bluestar, and then to taking oath on the sacred Gutka Sahib to form the government, the party has consistently toyed with Sikh sentiments. Now, the admission by Pargat Singh that the Congress government deliberately delayed justice in the sacrilege cases for political gain confirms our stand that the party harbours deep hatred towards the Sikh community," said Dhindsa.

Jhinjer said the Akali government had handed over the sacrilege case to the CBI for investigation, but when the Congress government came to power, they took back the case from the CBI. He alleged that the Congress has only politicised the issue of sacrilege and deliberately delayed justice. He asked Warringl MP Charnjit Singh Channi and Pargat Singh why they are silent on the issue of sacrilege.

District Congress committee chief Rajinder Beri said, “Such kind of an unruly scene created by SAD was uncalled for. The police did not deploy adequate security. Had there been any worker of our party inside the bhawan, the situation could have taken an ugly turn. They have broken the pillars at the entrance of our gates while crashing inside. We shall lodge a complaint against the SAD leaders tomorrow with the police".

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BOX: SAD in active mode

Unlike their previous demonstration when there were just about a handful of leaders who lodged protest over the arrest of Bikram S Majithia, party workers seemed quite charged up today. Ever since the new committee presidents have been formed and more members have been added in the core committee of the party, the workers seem to have got into an active mode.

Jalandhar