Chandigarh, November 18, 2019 (Yes Punjab News)
The Shiromani Aakali Dal (SAD) today asked Congress President Sonia Gandhi and former president Rahul Gandhi why they had neither visited Punjab nor directed chief minister Capt Amarinder Singh to cut short his European holiday and address the grievances of the Dalit family whose sole earning member died a gory death after being tortured in Lehragaga in Sangrur district.
Taking on the Gandhi family for its double standards, former minister Bikram Singh Majithia said Rahul Gandhi was fond of visiting Dalit families during elections to secure their votes, but when a gross atrocity was committed against a Dalit family in Punjab neither he nor his mother had deigned it fit to visit the State.
“The Gandhi family seems to have conveniently forgotten that it is their government in Punjab which is being accused of failing to take timely action against the culprits of this ghastly crime. Despite this they have failed to visit the State and commiserate with the victim family”, he added.
Mr Majithia said it was also shocking that Congress President Sonia Gandhi had not pulled up the chief minister and asked him to cut short his European holiday and address the grievances of the victim family.
He said the State government had already been caught sleeping with the FIR in the case being registered five days after the incident on November 7. He said even two days after Jagmail had died a horrific death and his kin were not giving permission to conduct the post mortem, Social Welfare minister Sadhu Singh Dharamsot had given a statement that the family’s plea for enhanced compensation would be decided by the chief minister after his return from his European holiday.
“Is this any governance?” he said adding the Congress government was completely insensitive to the grievances of not only the Dalit community, but each and every section of society”.
The SAD leader said the financial aid and other benefits offered by the Congress government to the family of Jagmail also happened only after farmer unions and Dalit outfits started an indefinite blockade of the Lehragaga – Sunam highway. “This is reflective of the callous attitude of the government towards the Dalit community”, he said adding seven Dalits had been murdered during Congress rule.
Asking the chief minister to return back to Punjab and address the grievances of the victim family, Mr Majithia said the family did not believe any of the promises made by Congress leaders as the government had a history of going back on its promises.
He said a written undertaking about enhanced compensation as well as other benefits including job for a family member, should be given to the family immediately.
The Akali leaders said reports were also coming in that Congress activists were trying to shield the accused. “We will not allow this to happen at any cost”, he said adding a four member committee of SAD led by Prof Prem Singh Chandumajra would visit Changaliwala village to ascertain all the facts of the case and ensure justice was done in the case. He said adequate security should also be provided to the victim family to ensure they were not pressurized in any manner.
