Latest news with #AmarinderSingh
Hindustan Times
27-07-2025
- Politics
- Hindustan Times
Punjab: Mann hits back at Capt over remarks on Majithia's arrest
A day after former chief minister Amarinder Singh accused the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) government of 'targeted harassment' of Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) leader Bikram Singh Majithia, chief minister Bhagwant Mann on Saturday hit back, calling the BJP leader 'double-faced' on the drug menace issue. Punjab chief minister Bhagwant Mann says the former CM failed to act against drug smugglers. (File) 'You are concerned about the human rights of drug smugglers...,' Mann said in a post on X and also questioned ex-CM's on his 2017 poll promise of eradicating the drug menace within four weeks. CM Mann was reacting to BJP leader's allegations that the AAP government 'believes that cheap sensationalism, political vendetta, and ruthless repression are substitutes for governance.' 'Punjab has never seen such a blatant assault on democracy where critics of their misrule and corruption are being house-arrested, falsely charged, and silenced,' Amarinder alleged in a Facebook post. Amarinder left the Congress in 2021 to float his party, and a year later, merged it with the BJP. 'The targeted harassment of Bikram Singh Majithia is a shocking example of their inhuman tactics. I strongly condemn this political persecution. Mass protests are being crushed, dissent is being muzzled, and Punjab is being remotely controlled from Delhi like a mafia operation,' Singh further added in his post. Mann hit back and in his post on X said that the former CM failed to act against drug smugglers despite taking an oath. 'Captain Sahib (Amarinder Singh), today you are concerned about the human rights of drug smugglers. Now Punjab has come to know that you all are double-faced, but, unfortunately, after losing a lot. The BJP will now dismiss your statement by calling it personal...,' he said. The CM further stated that it is ironic that several leaders, including former CM Charanjit Singh Channi, Ravneet Bittu, Partap Singh Bajwa, and Sukhpal Singh Khaira, are opposing action against a 'drug smuggler'. 'All these leaders of being hand in glove with drug smugglers,' Mann alleged, daring the Congress and the BJP to clarify their stance on the issue of drugs. On June 25, the Punjab Vigilance Bureau arrested Majithia in a case of alleged disproportionate assets. Majithia is in judicial custody till August 2.
Hindustan Times
18-07-2025
- Politics
- Hindustan Times
Akali workers barge into Congress office over MLA Pargat's remarks in Jalandhar
Tensions prevailed in Jalandhar when the workers of Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) barged into the office of the district Congress committee on Thursday after statements of Jalandhar Cantt MLA Pargat Singh emerged in which he alleged that there was a 'deliberate delay' during the previous Capt Amarinder Singh government in the state in 'providing justice' in sacrilege incidents. Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) protesting in Jalandhar. The Akali workers, accompanied by youth Akali Dal activists, burnt effigies of the Congress leaders, alleging that Pargat Singh has exposed Congress' anti-Sikh stance. YAD president Sarabjeet Singh Jhinjer said the Congress has a proven track record of being anti-Sikh from the 1984 riots to Operation Bluestar. 'The Congress has a long history of hurting Sikh sentiments. Now, with Congress MLA Pargat Singh admitting that the Congress government deliberately delayed justice in sacrilege cases for political gain, it reaffirms our stand that the party holds deep-rooted hatred toward the Sikh community,' he said. He added that it is highly shameful that the Congress played politics on such a sensitive issue involving the sacrilege of holy granths. 'During their five years in power, they deliberately stalled justice just for cheap political gains. Pargat Singh must come forward and name those in the Congress government who were responsible for this delay,' the SAD leaders said. Meanwhile, the president of the Jalandhar district Congress committee, Rajinder Beri, condemned the lawlessness created by Akali Dal workers at the party's office. 'They had no right to barge into our party office and hold a protest. Everyone knew the fact that serious sacrilege incidents happened during the SAD-BJP rule, and it was their leaders who orchestrated it with the help of fringe elements,' he said. The party demanded stringent action against the Akali workers for creating a ruckus in the Congress office.
The Print
18-07-2025
- Politics
- The Print
Punjab govt must take Centre into confidence on new anti-sacrilege bill
If the bill is referred to the Union government, then it would be another year before it finally becomes an Act. Earlier governments — the Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD)-Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) coalition government and the Congress government headed by Captain Amarinder Singh — had also brought similar bills which were found to be insufficient to meet the demands of the situation and hence junked. It might take about six months for the committee to send the bill back to the Assembly for clearing and then to the governor for approval. The Aam Aadmi Party–led Punjab government has tabled the Punjab Prevention of Offences Against Holy Scripture(s) Bill, 2025 which was discussed in the Assembly on Tuesday amidst ruckus and then referred to a select committee. A complex issue The new anti-sacrilege bill is said to have taken note of the shortcomings of the earlier bills and is hence more comprehensive, secular, and sufficiently stringent to be a deterrence for sacrilege offences considered very serious in the state. Meanwhile, 42-year-old Gurjeet Singh Khalsa, supposedly a non-political activist, has been staging a protest on top of a BSNL mobile tower in Punjab's Samana since October 2024 demanding an anti-sacrilege law. Though not widely reported in the mainstream media, such protests should be handled deftly by the government, lest it rakes up discontents of the past. In fact, the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), under Sections 298, 299, and 300, already provides stringent punishments for religious offences. Punjab government as well as the activists who are protesting for a new law against sacrilege of religious texts are of the view that the provisions of the current Union laws are not stringent enough. Incidentally, the bill inadvertently equates the Bhagavad Gita with the holy books of other faiths, which may trigger a controversy. The bill could be amended to also include other religious texts considered holy by a vast majority of Hindus and/or be worded appropriately to capture the essence of all holy books of all faiths without naming any of them. Needless to say, the issue is a complex one. Going by the text of the present bill, albeit a short one, there are sufficient indications to suggest that adequate care has been taken to make the acts of sacrilege a serious offence inviting harsh punishments. But it is not clear why these provisions could not be added to the existing Sections of the BNS. After all, the BNS is an all-India law that applies equally to all states and all faiths. The AAP-led Punjab government appears to have not consulted the Union government or had any discussions with the Union Law Ministry on this issue. What should be of concern are the possibilities of other states following suit and enacting separate laws to suit the political environment of respective states citing the Punjab bill as a precedent. In a federal setup, the Constitution allows states to enact sufficient laws to maintain law and order and preserve religious harmony through stringent punishments for offences involving religious practices, texts, icons, and symbols. There have been instances of religious books being vandalised, places of worship desecrated, and statues of widely revered socio-political leaders popular among certain communities damaged. Also read: Stop telling South Indians to learn Hindi. In Hyderabad, languages coexist without imposition Extra caution Another aspect of concern should be the misuse of any law, however sincere the intentions of the lawmakers might be. The anti-sacrilege bill may have good intentions, but there is hardly any guarantee that such a law will not become a tool for miscreants wanting to drive a wedge between communities and followers of different faiths in the state. In a politically volatile border state where religious fault lines have been exploited by extreme elements bent on hurting the unity and integrity of the country, the state government needs to be extra vigilant and take the Union government into confidence at every stage. The argument that such laws will strengthen the law and order machinery of the state government and act as an effective deterrence against crimes is understandable. But in a state which witnessed the nightmare of radicalisation on religious lines to the extent of separatism, violent uprising against the Union government, and misuse of the holiest of holy Sikh shrine, the Golden Temple, which was followed by the assasination of a former prime minister, the government needs to exercise extra caution in dealing with issues related to faith. The state government also needs to be vigilant enough to frustrate insidious attempts by pro-Khalistan elements who could create socio-religious conflicts. Besides sacrilege of holy books, the bill could also include any attempt to vandalise national symbols like the flag and the Indian Constitution. Religious issues are highly emotive and sensitive, and hence need extra careful handling especially in a state where the religion-politics mix is much stronger compared to other states. Seshadri Chari is the former editor of 'Organiser'. He tweets @seshadrichari. Views are personal.
Time of India
30-06-2025
- Politics
- Time of India
How sacrilege cases, Kunwar Vijay Pratap Singh induction fuelled AAP rise in Punjab
Jalandhar: Amritsar North MLA Kunwar Vijay Partap Singh, who has been shown the door by the AAP, played a crucial role in destabilising Capt Amarinder Singh's govt in 2021 over the 2015 sacrilege and police firing cases. The Aam Aadmi Party, which hit rock bottom in the 2019 parliamentary election, used the issue by inducting him into the party, marking the first step in their comeback. After becoming the main opposition by winning 20 seats in the 2017 assembly election, AAP did away with most of its prominent faces by 2018. A split also occurred in the party when Sukhpal Singh Khaira parted ways after his removal from the post of the leader of opposition, with a few MLAs joining his camp. In the 2019 parliamentary election, AAP's vote share dropped to 7.38%, with only Bhagwant Mann winning from Sangrur, while the party lost security deposits at most other seats. In comparison, the Khaira-led Punjab Democratic Alliance (PDA) and BSP alliance secured a 10.77% vote share. In the four assembly byelections in Oct 2019, its vote share was just 5 %. The turning point for AAP came in April 2021 when the Punjab and Haryana high court quashed the probe by IG Kunwar Vijay Partap Singh's Special Investigation Team (SIT) in the Kotkapura police firing case. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like Memperdagangkan CFD Emas dengan salah satu spread terendah? IC Markets Mendaftar Undo Although he was supposed to investigate only the Kotkapura firing case, he also looked into the sacrilege part and commented extensively about it in his media interviews. The quashing of his investigation and his statements triggered significant trouble within Congress. Though the high court tore into his investigation, he further embarrassed Capt Amarinder Singh's govt by resigning and raising questions about his govt, especially concerning the advocate general's office in the case. Navjot Singh Sidhu played on the front foot to question Amarinder for failing to deliver justice in the case, and other prominent Congress leaders, including ministers, also joined in. However, Kunwar also revealed in an interview with a Punjabi YouTube channel that Amarinder's office told him to go by the merits of the case. Amid this turmoil within Congress and political fluidity in the state, AAP managed to capitalise on the sacrilege and police firing issues by bringing Kunwar into the party. His induction was high-profile, with hoardings of his joining put up across the city. AAP supremo Arvind Kejriwal promised swift justice in the case once his party came to power. In the 2014 parliamentary election, AAP played the Sikh card by bringing in prominent faces associated with activism on the cataclysmic events of 1984. In 2021, it focused on the sacrilege and police firing cases. As the farm movement further increased political fluidity, AAP smartly capitalised on other issues as well, acting like a cohesive election machine. Its promises, such as free 300 units of power and Rs 1,000 per month to all women, along with the sentiment of change and a qualitative shift in politics on the ground, became game changers. At the same time, Congress's campaign was anything but imaginative and cohesive as its high command also refused to read. Now, with Kunwar Vijay out, the sacrilege and police firing cases are reportedly moving at a slow pace, drawing complaints from victims. Kunwar Vijay himself had been critical of the current AAP govt's handling of these cases. However, at present, these issues are not generating significant political heat, which also points to the broader role of the opposition. MSID:: 122163100 413 |
Indian Express
17-06-2025
- Politics
- Indian Express
In Punjab, fighting the long fight against drug menace
Last month, Punjab saw yet another deadline come and go in its battle against a scourge that has gone on for well over a decade now. In March this year — incidentally, about a month after the party lost its government in Delhi — the ruling Aam Aadmi Party vowed to wipe out the menace by May 31. It wasn't the first such boast, or deadline. In 2017, former Congress Chief Minister Captain Amarinder Singh, now with the BJP, had famously sworn on a holy book to eradicate drugs within four weeks of taking office. That promise, like others, faded quickly. Yet, despite the cynicism that surrounds every new campaign, there may be some glimmers of hope — in villages that have taken ownership of the fight, and which vigilantly guard their borders, and because of mothers who have turned into grassroots activists. For years, law enforcement has focused on end users — the victims of addiction rather than its perpetrators. In the last three months, according to police estimates, over 1,000 individuals caught with small quantities of drugs were sent to de-addiction centres instead of jail. More than 10,000 users have been persuaded to enter residential rehabilitation programmes or register with OOAT (Outpatient Opioid Assisted Treatment) clinics. Properties of peddlers are being frozen and — in a controversial move — some have been demolished by municipal corporations. It's been clear for a very long time, however, that part of the problem lies in the complicity of the powers-that-be in the drug trade. The complex network of drug mules and suppliers makes it difficult to nab the big fish. Punjab has long been a target of narco-terrorism, orchestrated by a hostile neighbour since the official end of militancy in the 1990s — in recent years, drones have been used to smuggle not just drugs but also weapons into the state. An increasingly resonant narrative points to the urgent need to tackle the demand side of the problem. Sociologists link addiction to a deepening sense of hopelessness, particularly among the youth. Punjab has failed to diversify its economy beyond agriculture, which is offering diminishing returns. The state must pivot towards manufacturing and services, while reforming agriculture to make it sustainable. Successive governments have failed to drive this transformation. Government jobs make little dent in the widespread unemployment. Recent initiatives such as the 12 steps introduced to rev up industrial growth by removing red tape, and amendments to the Punjab Shops and Establishments Act, 1958 that ease the burden on small businesses, are steps in the right direction. But they must be backed by a broader strategy that incentivises startups and prepares the state for the AI age. Punjab's war on drugs is winnable, but only through a multi-pronged approach.
