MLAs, others hardly get any freedom, let them speak: Tohra

FATEHGARH SAHIB, Dec 14: Gurcharan Singh Tohra, Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee (SGPC) president, has refused to comment on the c...

FATEHGARH SAHIB, Dec 14: Gurcharan Singh Tohra, Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee (SGPC) president, has refused to comment on the controversy between him and Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal.

When mediapersons tried to approach Tohra, a senior Akali leader, after a function at Bassi Pathanan today, he said: “I will not speak about what you expect from me.” But when they asked him about the statements that MLAs and others have made against him, he said, “They hardly get the freedom. Let them speak.”

The function that Tohra attended was the installation ceremony of Jagdeep Singh Cheema, recently nominated chairman of market committee, Bassi Pathanan. Jagdeep Singh Cheema is the son of former minister Randhir Singh Cheema who was earlier a bitter critic of Tohra. Cheema is also a close relative of former Akali Dal president Jagdev Singh Talwandi.

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Tohra’s speech during the function favoured the Badal government. He said that the government had extended maximum help to farmers by providing them free water for agriculture. He justified the power tariff and bus fare hike. Tohra appealed to the people to stop consuming intoxicants.

The SGPC president lashed out at the press for creating factionalism among Sikhs by labelling them “fundamentalists” and “moderates”. He also said that former Punjab Police chief K. P. S. Gill had taken away the Sikh youth from religion.

Kirpal Singh Libra, PUNSUP chairman and Tohra’s right-hand man, who was also present, was tight-lipped over the controversy. But two SGPC members — Jassa Singh Ahluwalia and Jaswant Singh Taan — justified Tohra’s statement. They said party workers had no say in the Badal government and Badal had no time for party affairs.

Ravinder Pal Singh Bagli, Akali Dal (Amritsar) spokesman, said Tohra could not fulfill his religious duties and Chief Minister Badal could not fulfill his official duties. Now they were enacting a drama to divert the people’s attention form their failures, he said. Bagli said the controversy between Badal and Tohra was spreading wrong messages when the Sikh “qaum” was celebrating its tricentenary.