Union minister for Food Processing Industry Harsimrat Kaur Badal today while expressing grief at the gruesome murder of a dalit youth at Gharagna village in Mansa district, said each and every person responsible for this heinous crime in which a limb of the victim was also chopped off, would be brought to book.Mrs Badal while appreciating that three persons had been arrested in the case, asked the Mansa police to investigate the case threadbare and ensure action against any other person involved in this inhuman act.The Union minister also separately talked to senior police officers of the Bathinda constituency which she represents in parliament and asked them to keep a strict watch on liquor contractors as well as liquor smugglers to ward off occurrence of any untoward incident. “The State will not allow the emergence of any gangs in the liquor trade and anyone indulging in any such activity should be arrested and proceeded upon as per the law of the land”, she added.
The Bathinda MP said while her heart went out to the grieving family whose son was attacked by liquor smugglers, she said the matter should not be politicised to score brownie points. “Even as the State is proceeding against the guilty, various political persons are trying to vitiate the atmosphere by making it appear as a dalit versus upper caste clash even though initial reports suggest it is a case of inter-gang rivalry between liquor smugglers”. She said far of there being any political interference in the case as was being alleged by the opposition, the Mansa police was pro-actively pursuing the wrong doers and bringing them to justice.Stating that the SAD was the voice of the people, including the dalit community, Mrs Badal said “those trying to inflame sentiments seem to have forgotten that the majority section of the dalit community had reposed faith in the SAD-BJP combine in the last assembly elections. “This is because of the unique schemes initiated by our government for the welfare of the dalits. Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal personally champions dalit causes and is providing responsive governance in stark contrast to the ‘maharaja’ type of politics seen in the State earlier during Congress rule. Such people who are have recently developed love for the people after being inaccessible for four years should better explain the oppression let loose on the dalit community during rule which led to their ouster from power”, Mrs Badal added.