Murder bid on Sukhbir assault on Sikh traditions, says SAD core committee

The Shiromani Akali Dal’s (SAD) core committee today described the assassination attempt on Sukhbir Singh Badal as an assault on Sikh traditions, Khalsa heritage and the sacred values and institutions bequeathed by the Great Guru Sahiban.

It also referred to the entire incident as a deep-rooted conspiracy to finish the moderate Akali leadership.

The core committee meeting of the party, which was presided over by acting president Balwinder Singh Bhunder, said the assassination bid was also an attack on the concept and ideology of ‘Miri Piri’ symbolised by Akal Takht and Harmandar Sahib which now bore the unholy marks of the anti-Sikh assassin’s bullet.

The committee resolved an attempt was being made to create conditions which could be used as an excuse to start a fresh wave of repression and elimination of Sikh youth in fake encounters. “The man who made the assassination bid is not a lone wolf. He was acting merely as a sharpshooter on behalf of powerful anti-Sikh forces,” said the core committee, which rejected the probe being conducted by the Punjab Police into the incident.

The SAD leaders said they would approach the Governor and demand an impartial probe. Senior leaders Bikram Singh Majithia and Dr Daljit Cheema added that the role of Superintendent of Police Harpal Randhawa was dubious.

They also questioned Akali leader Gurpartap Singh Wadala’s presence at a programme held by the Dal Khalsa in Moga yesterday. They said the Dal Khalsa did not believe in the constitution and stood for Khalistan and asked Wadala to clarify his stand on both issues.

The core committee also passed a resolution stating that the attack was part of a conspiracy to finish the moderate leadership of SAD. It condemned the attack on Darbar Sahib by anti-Sikh forces at a time when a ‘sewadar’ — Sukhbir Singh Badal — was doing ‘sewa’ at the ‘dwar’ of the shrine.

It also said the conduct of Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann in the entire episode was shameful. “Instead of taking stock of the situation following the attack on the holy shrine, the CM tried to belittle the incident,” said senior leaders.

The core committee also praised the alertness and courage shown by ASI Jasbir Singh and his companion which foiled the assassination bid even as it made it clear that ASI Jasbir was not supposed to be on duty on the fateful day and had come to Darbar Sahib on his own. “He was not part of the 175 cops posted at the shrine as claimed by Amritsar Police Commissioner Gurpreet Singh Bhullar,” the resolution added.