Sacrilege cases: Be-adabi Insaaf Morcha turns heat on Punjab's AAP Govt

Tribune News Service

Jupinderjit Singh

Chandigarh, February 5

After upsetting the political fortunes of the Akalis and the Congress, the heat of the sacrilege issue is on the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) government now.

Victims of the police firing over the sacrilege issue along with several Sikh organisations blocked the Bathinda-Amritsar national highway passing through Fardikot district today and threatened that more blockades would happen if justice was not done immediately.

The protests under the banner of the Be-adabi Insaaf Morcha are seeking immediate submission of the police investigation report on the cases and subsequent firing on protesters in Behbal Kalan and Kotkapura.

Though the protesters have been sitting on a dharna at Behbal Kalan since December 2021, they intensified the agitation today when they took to the highway.

Compounding the problem for AAP, the party’s own MLA Kunwar Vijay Pratap had met the protesters three days ago and expressed his dismay at the delay in justice. As per news reports, the AAP MLA said he did not have hope that the culprits would ever be punished. Pratap had recently resigned from a Vidhan Sabha Committee on Government Assurances, where he wanted to raise this issue.

However, Malwinder Singh Kang, chief spokesperson of AAP, has assured the protesters that the government would fulfil its commitments. “We are working with transparency. There was political interference in the police investigation during the Congress and the Akalis regime. We are committed to justice in the cases and the government will resolve the issue without any bias,” he stated.

Sukhraj Singh, son of Krishan Bhagwan who died during police firing in Behbal Kalan on October 12, 2015, is leading the protest. He said the AAP government, like the Congress and the Akalis, was just delaying the matter and was not serious about delivering justice. “This issue turned the state voters towards AAP. Now, the party is on the same line as the others,” he said.

Incidentally, a Special Investigation Team (SIT) into the Kotkapura police firing also released a statement, saying its investigation was in the advanced stage. SIT officials asked the public to share any information, if not shared earlier, with SIT.

Sukhraj Singh said whenever they intensified the protest, the SIT issues such a statement or the team members visit the crime site.

AAP’s assurance

We are working with transparency. There was political interference in the police investigation during the Congress and the Akali regime. We are committed to justice in the cases and the government will resolve the issue without any bias. — Malwinder Singh Kang, AAP spokesperson

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