PATIALA: Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) president Sukhbir Singh Badal today said Giani Harpeet Singh today defied the Hukamnama of December 2, 2024 which had specifically ordered against setting up of breakaway factions to weaken the Shiromani Akali Dal. “The whole world knows that Harpreet Singh has entered into a conspiracy with anti-Sikh and anti-Punjab central agencies to divide and weaken the Khalsa Panth, Punjab and Akali Dal in league with the disgruntled elements."
“ Everybody saw how fulfilled this conspiracy even after I had bowed my head before Sri Akal Takhat Sahib and owned full responsibility for any wrong done by anyone during the Akali government. My total surrender before Sri Akali Takhat Sahib had no meaning for him. Therefore, these elements colluded with the State police to eliminate me physically, and that too when I was performing seva in the holiest of holy shrines of Sikh religion, Shri Harmandar Sahib. But Akal Purakh had intervened to defeat this plot.”
The SAD president was addressing a massive dharna against the ‘land grabbing scheme’ of the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) government here amidst repeated traditional Jaikaaras hailing his fearless and unswerving leadership. He was welcomed with slogans of “Sukhbir teri soch te pehra devange thok ke “ and "Takht badal deyo, taj badal deyo, beimaana da raj badal deyo”.
Taking on the government boldly, Mr Sukhbir Badal announced that the SAD would not allow even one inch of the 65, 000 acres of land slated for acquisition to be acquired by the government. He repeated that any piece of land forcibly grabbed would be restored to the owners when SAD would form a government in 2027. He also warned farmers that Arvind Kejriwal, who had taken over the reins of the State government and had sealed a Rs 30, 000 crore deal with Delhi builders to undertake the present acquisition, was only testing the waters and would go on to acquire another one lakh acres of land if not stopped immediately. “This is not the end of their land grab assault. They plan to acquire other one lakh acres if they are not stopped in their tracks now. “
Asserting that he did not want to talk about the activities of Giani Harpreet Singh and the latter’s local supporters like Prem Singh Chandumajra and Surjit Singh Rakhra but was doing so to let Punjabis know the truth, the SAD president said “Giani Harpreet summoned me as well as the Akali leadership as part of a script with the sole aim of throwing me out of the Panth. A tailor made complaint was also procured to fulfill this mission”.
Stating that when the matter came to the notice of the SAD, its leadership decided that when its President was summoned to the Takht he should not try to give any argument. “It was accordingly decided to take responsibility for any mistake made by the government, party or officer”. Asserting that Giani Harpreet did not stop there, Mr Badal said “an attempt was made to kill me and when I escaped with the blessings of Waheguru the perpetrator was facilitated to secure bail with the prosecution filing a weak FIR and even stating that the murderous attack occurred in a melee”.
Firmly stating that he would stand up to the ideals of the Panth and that such acts would not prevent him from rising to safeguard the Panth and Punjab, Mr Badal said “the SAD has been formed with the sacrifices of your forefathers and will remain true to its ideals and principles”. He urged the people to look around them adding all development which had occurred in the State including creation of the agricultural marketing system, irrigation system or initiatives like free power, atta-daal, shagun and old age pension had been done by former chief minister Parkash Singh Badal. He said in contrast neither the Congress nor the AAP government had anything to show and could not tell one thing they had done for the State.
Referring to local rebel leaders Chandumajra and Rakhra, the SAD president congratulated the party workers for freeing themselves from their clutches. “These leaders did not let you rise”, he said adding “I don’t need these leaders. I need your blessings”, even as he urged Punjabis to recognize those who had betrayed the Panth besides thanking them for putting up a stupendous show of strength.
Earlier the SAD president spoke on how Kejriwal changed the head of the development authorities by giving this post to the chief secretary and appointing four outsiders as its members to facilitate the land loot. He said the AAP government even went back to a 1995 Act to acquire the land for peanuts and allot it to builders as per its whims and fancies instead of going by the 2013 central act which calls for giving farmers compensation at the rate of four times the market rate of the land. He also cited how outsiders including those associated with the Delhi AAP high command and their cronies had been appointed to key positions in Punjab while citing the names of Shalini Mitra, Arvind Modi, Vijay Nair, Veena Gupta, Deepak Chauhan and Rakesh Kumar Goyal. Mr Badal also disclosed that a former IRS officer – Mahesh Puri had been made incharge of the Punjab Vigilance department and was overseeing the department unofficially.
Senior leaders present on the occasion included Maheshinder Singh Grewal, Dr Daljit Singh Cheema, N K Sharma, Harpreet Kaur Mukhmailpur, Gurpreet Singh Raju Khanna, Surjit Singh Garhi, Kabir Dass, Sarabjit Singh Jhinjar, Jagmeet Hariau a, Amit Rathi, Jaspal Singh Bittu Chatha, Rajinder Singh Virk, Makhan Singh Lalka, Amarinder Singh Bajaj, Amarjit Singh Panjrath, Lakhvir Singh Laut besides others.OM