Chandigarh February 8 – The Punjab Chief Minister Mr. Parkash Singh Badal today described Captain Amarinder Singh’s allegations against him as “a pack of royal lies and a remote-controlled puppet-show to divert attention from the shocking exposures by he British Government which show that Mrs. Indira Gandhi sought direct help from the perpetrators of Jallianwala Bagh in carrying out the army assault on Harmandar Sahib and also in eliminating her political opponents.”
Mr. Badal said that the timing of the sudden revival of these worn out and baseless allegations is significant as there is an outrage at this time over disclosures made by the British Government on Mrs. Gandhi’s conduct at that time,” said Mr Badal in a statement here.
The Chief Minister said that the Congress is in the dock on the issue of massacre of thousands of innocent Sikhs in November 1984. “Finding no respite from the persistent exposures of their dirty deeds, the Congress has planned a diversionary strategy of blaming the Sikhs and their leaders for the events of those days. But this will boomerang,” said the Chief Minister.
“The Nehru-Gandhi family find themselves badly cornered by the revelations that Mrs. Gandhi sought foreign against her political rivals, especially the Akalis. The Gandhi family has now drafted the services of their old and trusted lieutenant, Captain Singh, to deflect attention from their unforgivable crimes by launching a hollow counter attack against Akali leaders. I have always been their first and favourite target. Amarinder Singh has always acted as a hired agent of the Nehru-Gandhi family in their devious conspiracies against the Sikhs. ”
Mr. Badal scoffed at suggestions that he shied away from struggle at that time and asked, “Did you and your government put me behind bars because I shied away from opposing you? Did you keep me in jail for over 16 years because I am a coward? Have you looked at the charges of the gravest nature brought against me after Operation Bluestar? Did you accuse me of “Waging war against the state” because I was hiding away?” asked Mr. Badal
The Chief Minister also came down heavily on Captain Singh’s allegations that he ( Mr. Badal) incited armed forces to revolt in the wake of the army assault on Harmandar Sahib. “This shows just how little does Captain Singh and his party understand the Sikh psyche. Not just me and the Sikh soldiers, every Sikh from a child to its most respected figures were deeply hurt by the events then and reacted strongly. Were people like Lt. Jagjit Singh Arora provoked by me? Did Sardar Khuwshwant Singh return his Padamshree title to the President because I incited him? Sensing the mood of the Sikh community, Amarinder himself enacted he drama of resigning from the Congress, only to rejoin it once he had fulfilled the agenda for which the Congress had sent him into Shiromani Akali Dal. Did he also resign at my behest? Amarinder is insulting those brave and religious soldiers who were moved by their deep religious sentiments to protest against an attack on their holiest shrine, ” said Mr. Badal.
“There is nothing new here. This is just a revival of the old strategy of putting the blame for Operation Bluestar back on the Sikhs community itself by maligning the established Sikh leaders. Mrs Gandhi herself had blamed the Sikhs for Operation Bluestar and Amarinder is just acting as His Masters’ Voice in taking that agenda forward in the interest of that family,” said Mr. Badal