CHANDIGARH:Shiromani Akali Dal (Sanyukt) senior leader, MLA and former Punjab Finance Minister Parminder Singh Dhindsa demanded the BJP-led central government to resolve the long pending issues of Sikh Panth and Punjab. Dhindsa said that the BJP government at the Center should announce a solution to these issues for the betterment of the Sikh Panth and Punjab.
Parminder Singh Dhindsa said that the main objective of Shiromani Akali Dal (Sanyukt) was not to seize power but to resolve the rights issues of Panth and Punjab by sacrificing personal interests for the betterment of Punjab. He said that in the independence of the country, Punjab and especially the Sikhs had made immense contribution for the liberation of the country by making great sacrifices but the governments of the time did not appreciate the sacrifices of the Punjabis and Sikhs.
Dhindsa further said that the Union Government should resolve the Panthic issues for which the Shiromani Akali Dal (Sanyukt) has been fighting for a long time. Including release of Bandi Singhs who have completed their sentences in jails, elimination of blacklist of Punjabi immigrants, early holding of SGPC elections, return of Sikh Reference Library valuables, sacred scrolls and historical documents etc during the 1984 occupation. Beside, to provide employment to the youth of Punjab and develop agro-based industries for the betterment of the state, the government should announce special package to promote Punjab's industry on the pattern of neighboring states and open international Wagah border and export of agricultural commodities abroad.
Regarding the above demands, Parminder Singh Dhindsa said that these demands have been pending for decades. He said that the damage done by the Congress government to the Sikhs and Punjab in the country including Punjab could never be forgotten. Dhindsa hoped that the BJP government would heed the long standing demands of the Sikhs and heal the wounds inflicted by the Congress governments.