Former deputy chief minister and Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) president Sukhbir Singh Badal today condemned the inhuman manner in which an Akali sarpanch was beaten to death last night, saying Punjab was burning even as the new rulers of Punjab were busy fiddling with rules and regulations to change all pro-people SAD-BJP decisions.Speaking about the incident, the SAD president said his earlier annoucement that the police force had been coopted by the Congress leadership in the ongoing vendetta drive against Akali workers was again proved by last night’s incident. He said Akali sarpanch Gurpinder Singh Lalli of Chetsinghwala village in Attari constituency was beaten up by Congress workers during the day yesterday. He said following this the sarpanch was again attacked at night and beaten up mercilessly leading to his subsequent hospitalisation and death. “If the local police had swung into action after the first incident a young life would have been saved from being extinguished”, he added.Mr Badal said a series of incidents had proved that there was a dichotomy in the message being given by chief minister Capt Amarinder Singh and what was happening in the field. He said it was clear the Congress cadre had been given a free hand to indulge in vendetta against Akalis even as the government espoused innocence on this issue.
“What else can explain the increase in not only the incidents but their brutality too”, he said adding “where there is a will there is a way. It is clear that the new Congress government has no political will to stop the vendetta killings of SAD workers”.The SAD president also demanded concrete action in all cases of vendetta incidents, incluidng killings. He said if the government wanted to send a clear message to the people that it was against this exercise it should proceed against Congress leaders named by the victims. “Only if action is taken against Congress leaders responsible for these incidents will they stop. Thre is no other way to end the current jungle raj which is holding sway in Punjab”, he added.Asking the Congress governemnt to give due attention to law and order, the SAD president said vendetta cases would also end immediately in case the Congress directed the police force not to be influenced by its party workers. “It seems the local police has been coopted by the Congress to become a party to this vendetta drive. That is why the police is unable to take immediate action in all such cases”, he added.Stating that the SAD would not sit back and let the Congress workers indulged in goonda raj, he asked the party district presidents to hold dharnas and protests to protest against all such cases of political vendetta. He said the party would also help victims of vendetta by taking up their cases in court and would also get all officials abetting the current vendetta drive hauled up as per the law.