CHANDIGARH:Taking strong exception to CBI’s review petition on the Bargari sacrilege case, Punjab Chief Minister Captain Amarinder Singh on Friday charged the central agency with trying to subvert the course of justice at the behest of the Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD), a part of the national government.
The Chief Minister described the move as a delaying tactic, aimed at scuttling the probe into the Bargari case, which the state government had decided to hand over to the Special Investigative Team (SIT) of Punjab Police through a resolution in the Vidhan Sabha in August 2018.
The Chief Minister expressed his full faith in the judiciary, and was confident the courts would uphold the law at all costs and give the much-needed closure and justice to the victims in the case.
The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) has intimated the Special Judicial Magistrate at SAS Nagar (Mohali) of its intent to file a review petition in the Supreme Court for review of its order dated February 20, by which the apex court had dismissed the central agency’s Special Leave Petitions on the ground of delay, while leaving open the question of law.
Not only is the CBI’s decision to move a review petition a blatant attempt to delay the investigation further, it is a clear endorsement of the Akali involvement in the incident, which had shaken Punjab back in 2015, the Chief Minister said. With this action, the Akalis had clearly proved their involvement in the entire ugly affair, he added.
Pointing out that the then SAD-BJP government had entrusted the probe into three cases filed in the matter to the CBI in November 2015, Captain Amarinder noted that the agency had failed to make any headway in its investigation all these years – a fact duly noted and recorded by the court during hearings in the matter.
The entire drama of filing closure report, refusing to give copy of the same to the state government, then taking a U-turn on it after nearly two months, was enacted by the CBI on the directions of the Akalis, who did not want the truth in the matter to come out, said the Chief Minister.
But the people of Punjab wanted to know the truth, and wanted justice, and would not rest till they get the same, said Captain Amarinder, vowing to fight the central agency tooth and nail in the courts to ensure that the investigation in the case is taken to its logical conclusion. By using such cheap tactics, the Akalis might be able to buy some more time but they cannot evade justice forever, he declared.