The Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) today asked AAP leader and failed lawyer H S Phoolka not to lie by claiming he had never recommended his juniors to the SGPC to fight the cases of victims of the 1984 Sikh genocide, even as it asserted that even now one of the lawyers in the DSGMC defence team representing the victims was Phoolka’s immediate junior.In a statement here, DSGMC president Manjit Singh GK said at various stages during the last 30 years, Phoolka had recommended his juniors to the SGPC and the same were given payments for representing the 1984 genocide victims. “We welcome any litigation on this issue and will expose you not only in court but also in the eyes of the entire Sikh community whom you have used to carve out a political career for yourself despite failing to get even one of the main genocide perpetrators convicted in the last 31 years”.
The DSGMC president said “we will also launch proceedings against you for claiming that the Akali Dal has given a clean chit to Jagdish Tytler. “Please show any evidence of the same or be ready to face the music”, he added.Manjit GK said the DSGMC would also approach the centre, Punjab and Delhi governments and demand a full probe into the income and property made by Phoolka in the last 31 years, especially since he has claimed that he has been working without remuneration. Mr GK said there seemed to be something suspicious in the activities of the AAP leader who wanted to maintain a stranglehold over all the important cases pertaining to the genocide. “Even now Mr Phoolka insists on appearing at court hearings in cases filed by Lakhwinder Kaur and Sheela Kaur against Jagdish Tytler and Sajjan Kumar respectively. This despite DSGMC hiring three lawyers to fight the cases and he is no longer directly representing the victims. It is a mystery as to why he is getting his name included in court hearings”.
The akali leader said whether the AAP leader was doing this to continue giving the impression that he controlled the cases or for cheap media publicity was something which he alone could answer. “But we do not expect any straight answer from Phoolka as he has used his position to enter politics and even get a parliamentary ticket from AAP besides getting his daughter appointed as a government pleader/ panel lawyer to represent the AAP government in Delhi high court. If this is not profiting from the cases of the 1984 victims what is?” Manjit GK asked adding Phoolka had also earlier made his daughter a standing counsel for the DSGMC also.
The DSGMC president said the real character of the AAP leader could be gauged from a statement made by Gurmeet Singh, an accused in 1985 transistor bomb case. He said Gurmeet had stated that Phoolka had demanded money to fight his case and refused to entertain him otherwise. “This despite the fact that Phoolka has established two NGOs”, the akali leader said.
Terming the AAP leader as an opportunist who had even shaken hands with the Congress along with his boss Arvind Kejriwal to form a government in Delhi, the DSGMC president asked him to do something concrete for the 1984 victims rather than indulging in antics. “You have chosen to sit with Kejriwal and distribute compensation to the 84 victims which has been released by the centre, but you do not have the guts to tell your master to give necessary facilities to SIT to investigate the 84 cases and reopen old cases to bring all the guilty to book”, the akali leader added.