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Pb CM vows not to spare one who ordered Behbal Kalan firing

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Press Trust of India Mehraj (Bathinda)

Punjab Chief Minister Amarinder Singh Monday vowed not to spare any one found guilty of ordering police firing in Faridkot in 2015 at people protesting against desecrations of Guru Grant Sahib earlier and killing two of them.

He also said the state's Special Investigation Team probing into the firing incident would soon find out who ordered the firing.

Singh made the statement a day after the SIT arrested former Moga SSP Charanjit Singh Sharma, who led a police team which opened fire at protestors at Behbal Kalan, Faridkot in 2015 during the SAD-BJP government's term.

The SIT arrested a former police officer yesterday. The officer in question must have been following orders and the SIT will identify those who issued the orders. They will not be spared at any cost, Amarinder said while addressing the gathering here.

 

The SIT will submit its report to the court and whosoever found guilty, whether a police officer or a politician, will not be spared at any cost, the chief minister said.

Lashing out at the Akalis for failing to bring culprits to book and not accepting the recommendations of its own Zora Singh commission set up to probe the desecration incidents, Amarinder Singh said the SIT probe initiated by his government would reach its logical conclusion soon.

He said he would personally ensure that nobody found guilty of the "horrendous" incident is allowed to go scot-free.

We formed Ranjit Singh Commission and, thereafter, cases from the CBI were withdrawn and handed over to the SIT of Punjab police," he added.

Speaking earlier, Punjab Congress chief Sunil Jakhar demanded strict action against those who ordered firing in Behbal Kalan and said the then SSP, Charanjit Sharma, was only an instrument.

The chief minister was here to disburse Rs 97 crore as relief to 18,308 small farmers from Bathinda and Mansa districts against debts from cooperative banks and personally handed debt relief certificates to 10 farmers each from the two districts as a token of disbursement.

Speaking on the occasion, Amarinder Singh lambasted the previous SAD-BJP government for ruining everything, from the agriculture to the industry and the economy, during its 10-year misrule.

"The Badalsand their cronies were busy filling their own pockets at the cost of the people's welfare, he alleged.

His government has reversed the trend, the chief minister said, adding 300 steel factories have been revived in Fatehgarh Sahib alone.

Maintaining that his government never discriminated in giving loan waiver or allocating development funds, Amarinder Singh said the Akalis behaved in a partisan manner to neglect the development of his ancestral village, Mehraj and Patiala.

Amarinder Singh expressed satisfaction that his government "faithfully implemented" his pre-election promises to waive farm debts and break the backbone of the drug trade.

He said there had been a sharp decline in the number of farmer suicides and a huge decrease in drug trade since his government took over.

Power Minister Gurpreet Singh Kangar announced that the Punjab government would soon amend rules to ensure that weaker sections of the society continue to get free power up to 250 units per month and are charged only for the consumption over and above it.

The cabinet would be meeting soon to take a formal decision on this, he said.

Disclaimer: No Business Standard Journalist was involved in creation of this content

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First Published: Jan 28 2019 | 7:10 PM IST

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