Punjab Chief Minister Captain Amarinder Singh on Tuesday expressed concern over the Akal Takht Acting Jathedar’s remarks that Sikhs are not safe even in India, and asked the Takht to put pressure on the Akalis to sever all ties with the ruling alliance at the Centre.
While he himself did not agree with the remarks, the CM said if the Jathedar did feel that way then he should take up the matter with the SAD and ask them to leave the BJP-led coalition government.
Unlike Pakistan, India had always taken pride in being a secular nation, Amarinder said, adding that any feeling among the Sikhs that they were not secure here is a matter of grave concern. If Sikhs are feeling insecure as stated by Giani Harpreet Singh then the dispensation at the Centre is to blame, he said.
As the Akalis claimed to be the custodians of Sikhs, they should take a stand and SAD chief Sukhbir Badal should ask wife Harsimrat Badal to resign immediately as Union minister, the CM said. Amarinder said while some incidents here and there could not be construed as a case of Sikhs not being safe, perception is as important as reality. The Sikhs had lived through a dark period in the 1980s and any feeling of being at the receiving end in any way would revive their sense of fear, he added.
