Badals in cahoots with Capt, their buses still plying without permits: Dhindsas

Accusing the Badals of being hand in glove with Punjab chief minister Capt Amarinder Singh, rebel Akali leader Sukhdev Singh Dhindsa and his MLA son Parminder Singh Dhindsa said the family’s businesses continue to grow even as the Congress has been in power in the state for three years.

Addressing the ‘save panth, save Punjab’ rally in Sangrur town, Dhindsa senior said, “Nobody stops his (Shiromani Akali Dal chief Sukhbir Singh Badal’s) buses that are plying without permits as usual. Nobody touched their cable business till today.”

The rally was attended by SAD (Taksali) leaders Ranjit Singh Brahmpura, Sewa Singh Sekhwan, SAD (1920) leader Ravi Inder Singh, former MP Balwant Singh Ramoowalia, former deputy speaker Bir Devinder Singh, ex-president of Delhi Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee Manjit Singh GK and former Akal Takht jathedar Ranjit Singh.

On February 2, Sukhbir Singh Badal held a rally at the same venue.

The speakers questioned the SAD chief’s panthic vision, saying they will first contest the Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee (SGPC) elections and then the Punjab assembly polls in 2022. They passed a resolution to dismiss Sukhbir from the SAD president’s post and to free Sikh institutions from the clutches of the Badal family.

“It was a panthic assembly. Today’s gathering was much bigger than the Badals’ February 2 rally here. Also, we will get support from the Bains brothers of the Lok Insaf Party (LIP) and senior advocate HS Phoolka. We want to bring down an arrogant Sukhbir. He managed crowd with his money but today people from different walks of life reached here in their vehicles,” said Dhindsa.

The Rajya Sabha member also lashed out at SGPC chief Gobind Singh Longowal for allegedly misusing funds to manage crowd for the February 2 rally.

Parminder Dhindsa alleged that Sukhbir’s so-called ‘panthic politics’ pushed the party to the brink. “We apologise for the delay in our decision to stand against the wrongdoings in the party. We should have done it earlier.

“Even if we don’t come to power, we will not allow the gurdwaras to be under control of the Badals. I wish Parkash Singh Badal a long life so that he could see how people will reject them,” added junior Dhindsa.

SAD (Taksali) chief Brahmpura said, “Sukhbir can’t tell the names of 10 Sikh Gurus and the four sahibzaade. SAD is not the Badals’ property.”

Former Akal Takht jathedar Ranjit Singh said, “Time has come when we need to stand against the Badals who protected those behind the 2015 sacrilege.”

REBELS’ SANGRUR RALLY A MEGA FLOP SHOW: SAD

The Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) on Sunday termed a rally organised by rebel party leaders in Sangrur as a mega flop show.

SAD spokesman Daljit Singh Cheema said the Akali rank and file had seen through the so-called Taksalis and boycotted their show entirely, thus forcing them to depend upon the Congress cadre to save face. “But they failed in this as the gathering was not even a fraction of the massive crowd which had congregated at the same venue recently on a call given by the SAD.”

Cheema said various disjointed factions failed to project any vision except trying to spread hatred against the SAD as per the Congress’ game plan.

“It is also questionable as to what leadership they will provide considering they could not choose a leader among their own till now.

The former minister said the leaders including Sukhdev Singh Dhindsa and Ranjit Singh Brahmpura also did not explain to the people as to why they had betrayed their party and became puppets in the hands of the state’s ruling party.