Pb Cong submits memo to Guv seeking justice to Grewal's family

Congress' Punjab unit president Amarinder Singh today submitted a memorandum to Governor V P Singh Badnore seeking the Centre's intervention for providing justice to the family of ex-serviceman Ram Kishen Grewal whose suicide, allegedly over OROP, has sparked a political row.
The party also demanded the sacking of Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar for "misleading the nation on the OROP issue and pushing Ram Kishen to commit suicide with his irresponsible attitude."
Amid statewide protests by Congress workers, Singh, who led a 20-member delegation of party leaders and ex-servicemen, urged the Governor to convey to the central government his party's concern over the brutal handling of the situation in the wake of Grewal's suicide.

The 70-year-old ex-serviceman from Haryana's Bhiwani consumed poison in the lawns behind Jawahar Bhavan, which houses some offices of the Ministry of External Affairs, on November 1. He was rushed to RML Hospital where he died later.
Grewal, along with three of his companions, had come to Delhi apparently to submit a memorandum to the Defence Ministry over the issue of 'One Rank, One Pension'.
Alleging "total breakdown of democratic systems" in the country, Singh expressed "shock and anguish" at the events following the suicide and demanded exemplary action against those guilty of harassing, detaining and beating up Grewal's family members.

Singh told the Governor that the situation triggered by the "dictatorial behaviour" of Delhi Police warranted immediate action against the guilty.

"The suicide of Grewal over the OROP issue had come as the last straw for the armed forces, whose morale had hit an all-time low as a result of the downgradation of their ranks by a recent Defence Ministry notification and the discrimination meted out to them by the 7th Pay Commission," the state Congress president said.
"As ex-servicemen we can feel the pain of the men sitting at the borders," Singh said with Lt General (retd.) T S Shergill by his side.

Shergill said the issue at heart was not whether he was a martyr or not, but the reasons that led him to take the extreme step.
Coming down heavily on the Defence Ministry and Delhi Police, Singh said the "shocking police crackdown" on Grewal's family members had "pained the conscience of the nation".
"Nothing can justify the barbaric behavior of Delhi Police, who did not spare even AICC Vice President Rahul Gandhi and also repeatedly took him into illegal detention when he tried to meet the bereaved family to extend his sympathy and support," he said.
"We stand by them (Grewal's family) in their fight for justice against the blatant and shameless murder of democracy in the national capital of the world's biggest democracy," he said.

Given the gravity of the issue, it is imperative that Prime Minister Narendra Modi personally intervenes in the matter and orders immediate action against Parrikar for pushing the ex-servicemen to such a state and also against Delhi Police officials who added to the family's woes with their "ruthless" behaviour, the memorandum said.
In an annexure to the memorandum, the ex-servicemen expressed their solidarity with the national and state leadership of the Congress "in their campaign against the unjustified, unwarranted and inhumane behavior of Delhi Police, acting at the behest of the central government".
The delegation also included AICC general secretary in charge of Punjab affairs Asha Kumari, former Union Minister Santosh Choudhary, PCC senior vice president Laal Singh, Leader of Opposition in Punjab Assembly Charanjeet Singh Channi and MLA Pratap Singh Bajwa.

They were joined by several ex-servicemen, including Major Amardeep Singh (OSD to Captain Amarinder), Col Bhag Singh (chairman of PPCC Ex-Servicemen Cell), Lt General TS Shergill, Lt General JS Dhaliwal, Major General SPS Grewal, Col NS Randhawa, Captain CS Sidhu, Col CJS Khera and Col AS Boparai.