CM camp hits back, wants action against Sidhu’s advisers

Five cabinet ministers and an MLA urge Cong national leadership to direct state party chief to immediately rein in his advisers

CHANDIGARH: After open revolt by ministers and several MLAs belonging to Punjab Congress chief Navjot Singh Sidhu’s camp, five cabinet ministers and one MLA called for strong action under the law against the state chief’s advisers, Malwinder Mali and Pyare Lal Garg. “The statements of Sidhu’s two advisers were clearly detrimental to national security,” said cabinet ministers Brahm Mohindra, Vijay Inder Singla, Bharat Bhushan Ashu, Balbir Singh Sidhu and Sadhu Singh Dharamsot said.

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CHANDIGARH : After open revolt by ministers and several MLAs belonging to Punjab Pradesh Congress Committee (PPCC) president Navjot Singh Sidhu’s camp, five cabinet ministers and one MLA called for strong action under the law against the state chief’s advisers, Malwinder Mali and Pyare Lal Garg, for their “patently anti-national and pro-Pak comments”.

“The statements of both these newly appointed advisers of Sidhu were clearly against India’s interests and detrimental to national security,” said cabinet ministers Brahm Mohindra, Vijay Inder Singla, Bharat Bhushan Ashu, Balbir Singh Sidhu and Sadhu Singh Dharamsot, along with MLA Raj Kumar Verka in a statement.

Besides stringent legal action against Mali and Garg, they also urged the Congress national leadership to direct Sidhu to immediately rein in his aides in the interest of the party, as well as the country. “The Congress has made many sacrifices for the protection of the nation’s security and peace, as have our soldiers at the borders. Nobody can or should be allowed to undermine these sacrifices and jeopardise the safety of our country and its people,” they emphasised, citing, in particular, the grave implications such statements could have for the border state of Punjab.

The Congress leaders also questioned Sidhu’s failure to put his foot down on such “anti-national and pro-Pak diatribe” by his close aides, despite the justified uproar it has triggered across party lines.

Sidhu’s omission in this regard had given ammunition to the opposition parties, which were quick to recall the PPCC president’s own bonhomie with the Pakistan Prime Minister and army chief, they pointed out, warning against the massive damage this could cause to the Congress in the run-up to the 2022 Punjab assembly polls, which are due in less than six months.

They termed Mali’s statement on Kashmir a dangerous and unacceptable deviation from India’s stated position on J&K. By questioning the unanimous 1994 resolution of the Parliament of India declaring Jammu & Kashmir as an integral of India (which was reiterated in 2012), Mali had blatantly toed the line of Pakistan, which had been trying to stake claim to the region and was in illegal occupation of certain areas, such as PoK, they added.

The Congress leaders said that even Garg’s statement countering chief minister Capt Amarinder Singh’s criticism of Pakistan reflected strong proPak leanings.