Amarinder accuses Badal of enacting drama over sacrilege cases

Chandigarh, Feb 22 (IANS) A day after Akali leader Parkash Singh Badal taunted the Punjab Chief Minister that he was ready to be "arrested" over the 2015 scarilige cases and police firing, Amarinder Singh chided his political bete noire for "persistently indulging in theatrics."

Badal's was "an obvious panic reaction to public exposure", Amarinder Singh said. On Badal's challenge that the former Chief Minister was "ready to go to jail", Amarinder said that it was part of a "drama" enacted by Badal who, he said, was finding himself cornered on the sacrilege cases in the backdrop of the findings of the Ranjit Singh Commission.

"Why is he so rattled if he has nothing to hide," Amarinder said Friday.

"He is in the habit of indulging in theatrics, especially when faced with an uncomfortable situation. I have never mentioned Badal or anyone else, for that matter, in connection with the Behbal Kalan and Kotkapura firing incidents and desecration of Guru Granth Sahib," Amarinder said, wondering if Badal's reaction was a case of guilt conscience.

Rejecting the Akali patron's allegation of a political witch-hunt by his government, the Chief Minister said he had never believed in it. "The Special Investigation Team probing the firing incidents was set up at the instance of the Vidhan Sabha," the Chief Minister said, adding it was a completely independent entity with no interference from the government.

"Who to call for questioning or whom to arrest was the prerogative of the SIT, which did not function as a puppet of the government, unlike the way systems worked under the Badal regime," Amarinder said.

Badal (91) said on Thursday that he had offered himself for arrest.

He told media that he called up Punjab Director General of Police (DGP) Dinkar Gupta and offered that he was available in Chandigarh and that the Punjab Police SIT, which is looking into sacrilege cases and the police firing incidents, could arrest him.

"The Chief Minister (Amarinder Singh) has made up his mind to arrest me. I will be happy if my last breath is in Amarinder's prison," Badal, who has been chief minister of Punjab five times, had said.

Badal was questioned by the SIT on November 16, 2018. His son and SAD president Sukhbir Badal was also questioned.

Alleging that things were being done for political vendetta, Badal said that Amarinder had earlier also booked him, his wife and Sukhbir Badal (President of the Shiromani Akali Dal) in false cases of corruption and put them behind bars in 2002.

The SIT has already arrested two senior police officers -- Inspector General (IG) of Police Parampal Singh Umaranangal and former Moga Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) Charanjit Sharma -- in the the firing incidents.

The SIT is investigating the reasons behind the firing on Sikh protesters, agitating against sacrilege of Guru Granth Sahib, during the Shiromani Akali Dal-BJP regime (2007-2017).