Announces SAD president Sukhbir Badal will not apply for bail in false case
Demands action against Cong leaders and officers who became party to booth capturing. Apprehends mischief during counting of ballots of samiti and parishad elections. Demands videography
Chandigarh, September 20 :
The Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) today demanded immediately registration of case and arrest of Muktsar SSP Manjit Singh Dhesi for organizing booth capturing in the block samiti and zila parishad polls even as it announced that the party would continue to fight for the rights of the people and that SAD president Sukhbir Singh Badal would not file for anticipatory bail in the political vendetta case registered against him.
Addressing a press conference here, senior SAD leaders Bikram Singh Majithia, Maheshinder Singh Grewal and Dr Daljit Singh Cheema said the Muktsar SSP, who was a real brother of the chief minister’s OSD Sonu Dhesi, had given directions to the district police to help Congress workers capture booths as per the command of his political masters. They said this was the reason why out of the total 54 booths in which polling had been ordered, 54 were from Muktsar district and 11 from Lambi constituency alone. “Despite such large scale booth capturing no case was registered against a single Congress worker or officer. This indicts Manjit Dhesi and he should be punished appropriately for muzzling the voice of democracy and allowing gangsters a free run of Muktsar district to do as they pleased”.
Explaining the entire issue, Mr Maheshinder Grewal said five times chief minister S Parkash Singh Badal went to the spot at Killianwali in Muktsar upon getting information about booth capturing after ringing the State DGP eight times and the IG two times. “Mr Badal chose to go to the people after appeals made to the State police failed to produce any results. He was accompanied by SAD president Sukhbir Singh Badal”.
Ripping apart the false and fabricated case registered against the SAD president, Mr Grewal said the complainant Jatinderpal was the real brother of Congress candidate Ravinderpal Rammi. He said the FIR did not mention any hurt caused and there was no medical report even though this section had been added. “Even the supposed victims are shown to be from Maur which proves our contention that outsiders were used to capture booths in Lambi. Further the complainant says he knows most of the supposed aggressors but the case has been registered against unidentified persons”. He said all this proved that the government had pre-decided to register a case against Mr Sukhbir Badal as part of the political vendetta drive unleashed by it against the SAD. We on our part will not be cowed down by such tactics and will continue to fight for peace and communal harmony in Punjab”, he added.
Senior leader Dr Daljit Cheema disclosed that cent per cent booth capturing in which Akali workers were ousted from booths had occurred at 164 places. He said the SEC was forced to order repoll in 54 places following pressure from people. “Despite this no case has been registered against any Congress minister, legislator or worker for indulging in this goondaism. He said even in cases where complaints had been submitted like that against ASI Daljit Singh in Lambi on September 14 no action had been taken. “This ASI was captured on CCTV footage yesterday while talking with Congress goons”. He said even Congress minister Gurpreet Kangar and another minister Brahm Mohindra’s personal assistant were seen capturing booths and polling bogus votes respectively.
Dr Cheema said the SAD was providing all this information to the Station Election Commission so that responsibility for the same could be fixed. He said the SAD also apprehended that there would be more irregularities during counting as officers had got SAD candidates to sign poll result forms in advance. “These forms should be re-issued with changed proforma. The entire counting process should also be videographed”, he added.
Mr Bikram Majithia gave details about SSP Dhesi, saying the officer had been shown extreme largesse by repeated Congress governments and how he had become an SSP after being recruited as a constable under Sports quota despite having no laurels in the field of sports to his credit. He said Dhesi had been made an ASI after getting two promotions in a single year and later made Inspector in 2002.
Others present on the occasion included former minister Parminder Dhindsa and SAD Secretary Charanjit Brar. EOM
