SAD seeks probe by sitting judge in Behbal Kalan incident

SAD president Sukhbir Singh Badal Thursday accused the Amarinmder Singh government of "misusing" the SIT, set up to probe the Kotkapura and Behbal Kalan firing cases, to settle "political scores".

The Shiromani Akali Dal president made the allegation, demanding the transfer of probe either under the supervision of a sitting apex court judge or by an independent agency.

"In the light of the brazen politicisation of the probe by the Congress government, we demand that the probe be handed over either to a sitting judge of the Supreme Court or to an independent investigative agency," said Badal.

"Only then can a fair probe be conducted into these incidents," he added.

The real motive behind the entire Congress exercise is not to unravel the truth but to weaken the Sikh institutions like SAD and render the Sikhs leaderless, he said.

Condemning the alleged harassment of Akali leader Mantar Singh Brar by the SIT, Badal said it was being done under political instructions to target Akali leaders.

"Everybody knows that Brar was only an MLA at that time and had no role whatsoever in the matter," he said.

The Congress game plan to implicate the Akali leadership in the Kotkapura and Behbal Kalan incidents was clear right from the beginning, he added.

Both Chief Minister Amarinder Singh and pradesh Congress president Sunil Jakhar had held the Akalis responsible for both the incidents even before an inquiry was instituted to probe the cases, he said.

He said his party did not cooperate with the Ranjit Singh Commission as its findings were announced even before its institution by Amarinder Singh and PPCC leader Jakhar.

"This is why we did not cooperate with the Commission. Now again the manner in which the SIT has been set upon Brar makes it clear that it is following the footsteps of the Congress commission headed byRanjit Singh, he said.

The former deputy CM said the SAD was the first to extend cooperation to the SIT.

We did this in good faith trusting that the police officials given the responsibility to probe the two firing cases would do a professional job unlike the Congress commission headed by Ranjit Singh. Our hopes, however, have been belied.

"Just like the commission, the SIT too has become a tool of the Congress party to indulge in the vendetta politics," he said.

The SIT officers are being openly directed by the chief minister and his Cabinet colleagues to implicate Akali leaders in the tragic firing incidents, he said.

"Only a sitting judge of the Supreme Court or an independent investigating agency can bring out the truth," he said.

The SIT is probing police firings in Kotkapura and Behbal Kalan in 2015 on people protesting against the state-wide incidents of desecration of Sikh religious scripture Guru Granth Sahib earlier during the year.