THE APPEARANCE of flags dubbed “Khalistani” on the gates of the Himachal Pradesh Assembly complicated in Dharamsala has set political circles abuzz within the election-bound state, particularly because it by no means noticed such exercise even on the top of militancy in close by Punjab.
The political mud-slinging continued on Monday, with Chief Minister Jai Ram Thakur exhibiting an image on his cell phone of Leader of the Opposition Mukesh Agnihotri with a person sporting a Khalistani T-shirt. “This is a wierd state of affairs earlier than us, and what it signifies, I don’t wish to get into it. Many issues will come out through the investigation,” Thakur mentioned, including that the flags had been positioned by individuals who had come from exterior the state.
The Opposition events questioned the ruling BJP’s claims, significantly coming so quickly after the Punjab Assembly elections the place it had leveled comparable pro-Khalistani fees on the Aam Aadmi Party. Having trounced the opposite events, together with the BJP, in Punjab, AAP is planning a severe political fray into Himachal with the approaching election.
The Congress referred to as the planting of the pro-Khalistan flags and banners on the Assembly complicated partitions a safety lapse. About the picture displayed by Thakur, Congress chief Agnihotri mentioned: “This is Jai Ram Thakur’s government, asking people to change their clothes is not my job.”
Agnihotri additionally mentioned that the occasion the place the picture was taken was attended by a senior BJP chief as nicely. “All this is a ploy to deflect attention from the real issue of paper leak in police recruitment,” he mentioned.
The constable recruitment examination, held on March 27, is being investigated for paper leak, with round a thousand candidates on the radar.
The Congress has been staging a dharna on the difficulty, and on Monday, its Mahila Morcha president Janeb Chandel mentioned the Thakur authorities had failed on regulation and order and safety, and was not in a position to even safe the Assembly constructing. The Assembly is in session in Dharamsala solely in winter, and the safety is lax the remainder of the time.
A Congress chief referred to as the incident suspect, mentioning that Himachal did not witness any Khalistani assist even through the Eighties when Punjab was caught up in a violent agitation for separate statehood. “In the name of nationalism”, and political good points, “the BJP leaves no stone unturned”, the chief charged.
The chief additionally talked about how there was a spurt in these alleged Khalistan-linked incidents as elections strategy. Last 12 months, the banned Sikhs for Justice (SFJ) was mentioned to have issued threats to CM Thakur and different political leaders. Then, on New Year’s Eve, the safety businesses bought a tip-off a couple of bomb positioned on the historic Ridge Maidan in Shimla, which is frequented by hundreds to mark the top of the 12 months. The tip-off was later discovered to be faux, with safety businesses not arising with something in searches.
Last month, days after AAP received in Punjab, alleged Khalistani flags had sprung up in Una, Himachal. In June, the SFJ is ready to carry a “referendum” for Khalistan in Himachal.
AAP in-charge of Himachal Durgesh Pathak referred to as the incidents “strange”. “The Khalistanis don’t have anything to do with Himachal. If their actions are being witnessed in Himachal, there is likely to be two issues — both the Jai Ram Thakur authorities is completely uncompetent or defunct, or that the BJP is hand in glove with these Khalistani components.”
With “a powerful man like Amit Shah” as Union Home Minister and the BJP in energy within the state, how might such actions occur, Pathak requested. Besides, if there have been such components, why have been they not concerned in comparable actions in Punjab however in Himachal, he requested, suggesting that the explanation was political.
ID Bhandari, a 1983-batch IPS officer and former DGP of Himachal, who has joined AAP, additionally mentioned the state had remained largely untouched by Punjab militancy. “Sometimes militants took refuge here, but even such cases were rare. Most of them were tracked down by the Punjab Police and taken back. Once a radical called Balbir tried to open fire but his pistol jammed. What we are seeing today is unprecedented.”
As for the person dubbed the primary wrongdoer and booked by the Himachal Police, the SFJ’s US-based Gurpatwant Singh Pannu, the BJP authorities will not be clear about what must be executed to get him again. Thakur mentioned Monday that investigation was on, they usually couldn’t reveal a lot.
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With inputs from TheIndianEXPRESS
