SIT quizzes Badal at his house amid high drama
Ravinder Vasudeva ravinder.vasudeva@hindustantimes.com
CHANDIGARH: Amid high drama, the special investigating team (SIT) — probing the 2015 police firing on anti-sacrilege protesters in Kotkapura and Behbal Kalan — on Friday questioned former chief minister Parkash Singh Badal at his official residence here.
As SIT member and IG Kunwar Vijay Partap Singh landed at Badal’s residence in Sector 4, the former chief minister came out and expressed his resentment over the IG coming alone to record his statement. Badal asked the IG to connect a call to SIT head and additional director general of police (ADGP) Parbodh Kumar.
The IG obliged the former CM and handed over his phone to him. “Hello, arz hai ke main chounda haan ke tussin vi aajo. Eddi important gal hai ke tussi mainu bulaya hai, jehda ke panj baar chief minister reh chukkya hai. Tussin eddi vi takleef nhi kar sakde? (I request you to come. . It’s an important issue for which you have called a person who has remained the head of the state for five times. Can you not come yourself (to question me. If you cannot come, I will come to you),” Badal told the SIT head. Kumar reached the venue within minutes. He was accompanied by two other SIT members, IG Arunpal Singh and SP Bhupinder Singh.
The SIT examined senior Badal for nearly half an hour with main thrust on questions pertaining to who ordered police action on protesters in Kotkapura and Behbal Kalan on October 14, 2015. The SIT, it is learnt, also asked Badal if he had given “firing” orders to then DGP Sumedh Saini. Badal was also asked about the role of his government in handling the cases of sacrilege and the role of Dera Sacha Sauda in the entire controversy. “I told the SIT that it was my government that made the tough anti-sacrilege law. The SIT was short of questions,” the former chief minister later told reporters. “The SIT is politically motivated, but I still appeared before it as I’m a law-abiding citizen,” added Badal.
Badal accused chief minister Amarinder Singh of using the SIT to target him.“Amarinder Singh has sent the SIT to me. … They want to turn us from wit ness to accused. Never in the his tory of independent India has a democratically elected chie minister been called for ques tioning for attempted murder Was former PM Indira Gandh summoned as witness after Operation Bluestar? Recently, a railway tragedy at Amritsar killed more 70 persons, was the rail minister or the chief minis ter questioned,” asked Badal.
“I am not afraid of him (Ama rinder). During his previous ten ure too, he tried his best to impli cate us and did not even spare my wife,” Badal added.
The Akali Dal had earlier objected to Kunwar Vijay Pratap being part of the SIT, accusing him of being the “agent of the rul ing Congress.” Senior Akali Da leaders, including SAD presi dent Sukhbir Singh Badal and former minister Bikram Singh Majithia, were also present.
Amarinder Singh has sent the SIT to me… They want to turn us from witness to accused. It’s all politically motivated. PARKASH SINGH BADAL, former CM
CHANDIGARH: Notwithstanding the turmoil it is going through over Panthic issues, the Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) on Friday came up with unexpected aggression over former chief minister Parkash Singh Badal’s questioning by special investigation team (SIT) probing the sacrilege incidents and police firing on protesters at Behbal Kalan and Kotkapura in 2015.
Such was the planning of SAD strategists that the party not only outsmarted the government plan to corner Badals on their role in the matter, but it also highlighted lack of coordination among SIT officials.
With former Akali minister Bikram Majithia as the main strategist, the party even went to the extent of deploying its young brigade to keep tabs on the movement of SIT members from the police headquarters located at a distance of not more than one km from Badal’s MLA flat where he was questioned.
As soon as information reached the SAD camp that only IG Kunwar Vijay Partap Singh, an SIT member, has left for Badal’s residence, the SAD patron, along with Majithia, came out of the flat and stood next to the main entry.
The original planning of the party was that in case the SIT head ADGP Parbodh Kumar did not turn up for questioning, Badal would go the police headquarters to record his statement. In fact, the former CM had talked to Kumar regarding this.
EX-CM INSISTED ON SIT HEAD’S ARRIVAL
“Badal Saab has already clarified that if SIT head Kumar won’t come here, he will go to the police headquarters to record his statement,” was the stock reply by Majithia in response to the queries of mediapersons.
Though Badal refused to give statement to Kunwar Vijay Partap Singh, whom the party has termed as a “Congress agent” because of “objectionable” security provided to him, in a dramatic gesture he ushered in the IG with folded hands under the glare of cameras. “You please come inside,” he said.
However, Badal also made light of the earlier notice sent to him by the SIT to appear at Amritsar circuit house. “What is the credibility of SIT? They were not even aware that they can’t summon me to Amritsar under Section 160 of the CrPC,” he said.
“More funny was their act of sending the notice meant for me to the official residence of CM Captain Amarinder,” he added.
Anticipating mega coverage, the SAD had even set up a special media centre under tents outside Badal’s official flat. The party even served pizzas and cold drinks to mediapersons.
SUKHBIR STAYS AWAY FROM BADAL PRESSER
SAD chief Sukhbir Badal, who was seen sitting with other senior party leaders, including its core committee members, did not even turn up at the press conference that Badal addressed. During the questioning, Sukhbir sat outside the house.