Turbans topple as SAD leaders stopped from marching to Assembly

Ruchika M Khanna

Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, March 20

Turbans were tossed as police tried to prevent SAD-BJP leaders from marching towards the Punjab Assembly here to register their protest on Tuesday.

As Akali leaders led by Sukhbir Badal breached the second line of defence, water cannons were used to keep them at bay. Police also lathicharged the protesters.

Protesters hurled bricks at the forces. Turbans of both Sukhbir Badal and Bikram Majithia were tossed in the mayhem.

All BJP and SAD leaders, including Vijay Sampla, later surrendered. Sukhbir and Majithia also courted arrest.

Earlier, Sukhbir said Chief Minister Capt Amarinder Singh is scared of the wrath of the farmers as he had failed to keep the promises made to them.

He was addressing a protest rally organised by the SAD-BJP against the Congress government over its alleged failure to implement the farm loan waiver and its alleged efforts to stop subsidised power to the agricultural sector.

Sukhbir said all social security pensions besides the insurance scheme for farmers has been stopped; and now efforts were on to start charging them for power used in the agricultural sector.

Sukhbir accused Amarinder of being inaccessible to people and succumbing to coteries.

He said Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal would have been jailed had he not tendered an apology to Bikram Majithia for levelling false charges against him.

He alleged that the Congress government had been unable to manage finances. He took a dig at the CM and Finance Minister Manpreet Singh Badal for “crying” continuously about the “state treasury being empty”.