Punjab Assembly witnesses scuffle between Akali, Congress MLAs
Ludhiana: Legislators of ruling Akali Dal and the opposition Congress party got into scuffle with each other in the State assembly of Punjab over the racial violence
in Ludhiana city. It all started when some Congress legislators moved towards
Deputy Chief Minister and State's Home Minister Sukhbir Singh Badal when he was
replying to a Call Attention Motion on the State's law and order situation. Authorities
were forced to impose curfew in Ludhiana following violent protests by sundry
Sikh fora against the holding of a public discourse by a controversial religious
cult leader. In context of these violent incidents, Prakash Singh Badal chief
of Punjab was confronted by the opposition legislators belonging to Congress on
the floor of the House while the ruling Akali Dal legislators rushed and formed
a ring around him. Consequently, a scuffle ensued between the warring legislators.
Later, leader of the opposition and former chief of Punjab Rajinder Kaur Bhattal
staged a protest along with her fellow legislators outside the Assembly. Bhattal
claimed that the Speaker of the Assembly should have listened to them instead
of Prakash Singh Badal. Further, she contended that Congress legislators were
forced out of the assembly in the scuffle. "Whatever happened in Punjab, Jalandhar
and Ludhiana, this must stop. Speaker should have listened to us instead of Prakash
Singh Badal (state chief). The legislators of Akali Dal entered into a scuffle
with the Congress legislators and forced us out of the Assembly," said Rajinder
Kaur Bhattal. However, chief of Punjab Prakash Singh Badal termed the incidents
as unfortunate. "The incident was unfortunate. Although earlier also Congress
people have created uproar in the assembly, this is for the first time that they
started up with violence," said Prakash Singh Badal. Sikh organisations had taken
to streets on Saturday (December 05) to protest the holding of a public discourse
by controversial religious leader Ashutosh Maharaj, who has not found favour with
Sikh groups for allegedly preaching against their religion. The protestors had
pelted stones and damaged public property, forcing police officials to use teargas
and open fire to disperse the crowd. Many protestors had got injured in the violence.
Radical group leaders like Bhai Mohkam Singh, Convenor of Khalsa Action Committee,
Kanwarpal Singh Bittu of Dal Khalsa, Baljit Singh Daduwal, Ranjit Singh, and Jasbir
Singh Rode were among those who had led the protests. Although the discourse was
supposed to be held over two days - December 5 and 6 - the violent clashes prompted
the district administration to cancel the permission granted to hold the conference.
Many Sikh organisations, including the radical Dal Khalsa, said that the discourse
was backed by the state government and Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). Swami Ashutosh
Maharaj heads an organisation named Divya Jyoti Jagriti Sansthan (DJSS). Reportedly
Ashutosh Maharaj's promotion of Hindu tenets has found favour with the Bharatiya
Janata Party (BJP) and the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS). Swami Ashutosh
Maharaj
has been on the hit list of the Sikhs since the eighties, after he allegedly spoke
against the Sikh gurus and their religious text, the Guru Granth Sahib.
