The Akali Dal patriarch and former chief minister Parkash Sigh Badal Wednesday said he was not afraid of any threats from "those who want to take my life", as he accused the Congress of backing "such elements" to foment trouble in Punjab.
His comments come after the Uttar Pradesh Police on Monday arrested three men associated with the Sikh militant group, Khalistan Liberation Front, for allegedly planning to target him.
Badal said he would consider a "great fortune and a matter of honour" to lay down his life for the cause of peace and communal harmony in Punjab, especially for strengthening the bond between the Hindu and the Sikh communities.
"These elements, who have always the backing, secret and not so secret, of the Congress party, are still active in Punjab. This unholy combine is bent upon forcing the Sikh masses into the deadly bloodbath of the 1980s from which Punjab and the Sikhs have not yet fully recovered," he said.
Badal said he considers "no price too high' to save the Sikhs and the Punjabis from "this deadly conspiracy".
"Peace and communal harmony are an item of faith with me and I am not afraid of any threats or conspiracies of those who wish to take my life just because my continued presence is a hindrance in the path of their wish to set Punjab aflame again," he said in a statement here.
The SAD leader said he requires no security cover as being offered to him by the government.
"Perhaps it is hard for you to understand but I wish to make it clear that I am ready to die for peace and communal harmony and have no need for any government security.
"Not to speak of any additional security, I request you to withdraw whatever security you need to withdraw from around me," Badal said.
Chief Minister Amarinder Singh had on Tuesday said his government will provide proper security to the Badals in view of the enhanced threat perception to their lives.
Badal said the chief minister should focus on preserving peace and harmony and on saving the state from slipping into "dangerous anarchy".
"They must stop playing the dangerous communal games aimed at causing communal tensions in Punjab. The people of the state have already lost thousands of their innocent near and dear ones to such nefarious and cynical games," he said.
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