Khaira sticks to his guns; says forces not above Constitution

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I condemn the attack on the Indian army. This is a grave failure of intelligence agencies and the BJP government. The accused should be punished through court trial.

SUKHPAL SINGH KHAIRA, president, Punjabi Ekta Party

■ SANGRUR: Former leader of opposition and president of Punjabi Ekta Party (PEP) Sukhpal Singh

Khaira has said he does nor regret his remark, made on Saturday, where he had accused the army and the security forces of committing excesses in the Kashmir valley.

“I stand by my statement that there have been ‘human rights’ violation in the Kashmir valley by ‘some Indian soldiers’ in the past years,” Khaira told reporters on Sunday.

The Bholath MLA also showed news items of ‘mass rape’ in Kashmir, claiming that this case of 1991 was still pending in the Supreme Court.

“The international media had reported that 30 women had been raped in Kashmir villages and the victims are fighting a legal battle in the Supreme Court for justice. When we claim that boundaries of Kashmir are an integral part of India, why are we not talking about the legitimate demands of the Kashmiris,” he questioned.

“It is unfortunate that an army major even tied a man to a jeep to use him as a human shield,” he added. He claimed that certain communal people and media houses were targeting him and Punjab cabinet minister Navjot Singh Sidhu.

“I condemn the attack on the Indian army. This is a grave failure of intelligence forces and the BJP government. The accused should be punished through court trial. Security forces are not above the Indian constitution. I don’t believe in an eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth,” he concluded.