SAD summons Brar, seeks reply on ‘anti-party’ acts
Notice comes a day after Brar announced expansion of the parallel power group that he constituted two months ago, seeking a ‘course correction’ in party
CHANDIGARH : In fresh trouble for former MP Jagmeet Brar, the disciplinary committee of the Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) on Friday asked him to explain his anti-party stand in person on December 6 at the party headquarters here.
The notice by party’s disciplinary action committee chief Sikander Singh Maluka came a day after Brar announced the expansion of a parallel power group of senior leaders, SAD Unity Coordination Committee, that he had constituted two months ago, seeking a “course correction” in the party.
The formation of the committee in October had also resulted in a show-cause notice against Brar. The second notice to Brar in two months could well lead to his expulsion from the party, the second in a month, the first being the ouster of Bibi Jagir Kaur for contesting against party candidate Harjinder Singh Dhami in the Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee president election last month.
Kaur, too, was summoned by the disciplinary committee. But she neither appeared before the panel nor replied to the notice that was issued after the party suspended her.
Notably, Kaur is among the 12 members that Brar claimed to have added to the “unity committee” while announcing its expansion on Thursday, after he was removed from the party’s core committee the day before.
A letter sent to Brar by Maluka said disciplinary proceedings had been initiated against the former MP for engaging in anti-party activities.
“The committee had already expressed its dissatisfaction with the reply submitted by the former MP in reply to the show-cause notice issued to him earlier (about two months back),” adding that instead of falling in line, Brar was continuing with the process of constituting his own committees, besides engaging in anti-party activities.
Maluka also asked the former MP to submit a written reply to the committee and also appear in person on December 6. Multiple calls to Brar for a comment
Three leaders claim no connection with ‘unity committee’
Out of the 12 members that Brar had announced to include in the “unity committee”, three have announced that they have no connection with it.
The three leaders are SGPC member Alwinder Singh Pakhoke; Ravi Karan Kahlon, son of former speaker Nirmal Singh Kahlon, who lost the 2022 assembly polls from Dera Baba Nanak constituency, and Sucha Singh Chhotepur, who remained the state convener of the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), but was removed in 2016 over corruption charges. He had joined SAD last year and unsuccessfully contested the state polls from Batala.
“I am not in any SAD committee and also not with Brar. I work for the good of SAD,” said Chhotepur, while Kahlon said Brar never discussed anything about joining the committee.
Was expelled by Congress in 2016
Brar was the Punjab Congress general secretary during chief minister Beant Singh’s tenure in the early ’90s. He was first elected to the Lok Sabha in 1992 and defeated SAD president Sukhbir Singh Badal in the 1999 elections from Faridkot. At that time, Sukhbir was a Union minister in the Atal Bihari Vajpayee cabinet and his father Parkash Singh Badal was the Punjab chief minister. Brar was a permanent invitee to the Congress Working Committee for 10 years and the general secretary of the All-india Congress Committee from 2010-13. He, however, lost the Lok Sabha elections in 2004 and 2009 and claimed himself to be a “victim of a dirty gang of SAD and Congress MLAS”.
He was expelled from the Congress in 2016 after rebelling against then Punjab unit chief Capt Amarinder Singh, following which he announced support to the AAP. Thereon, for a year he remained in Mamata Banerjee’s Trinamool Congress and joined the SAD in 2019 ahead of the Lok Sabha elections. But differences with Sukhbir have led to him being sidelined in the party three years later.
Instead of falling in line, Brar is continuing with the process of constituting his own committees, besides engaging in anti-party activities. SIKANDER SINGH MALUKA, SAD disciplinary committee chief