Punjab Chief Minister Capt Amarinder Singh on Tuesday assured the Punjabi diaspora, settled abroad, that he would take up with the Chief Justice of the Punjab and Haryana High Court, as well as the Central Government, the issue of setting up “special courts” to expeditiously settle cases of those who had been declared Proclaimed Offenders (POs) after fleeing Punjab during the dark days of terrorism.
He gave the assurance while responding to a request from a group of NRIs, currently visiting Jalandhar in Punjab on the 550th birth anniversary of Guru Nanak Dev.
The Chief Minister honoured the NRIs by giving them books on the life and philosophy of the Sikhism founder, besides a commemorative coin and a memento each on Monday, an official statement said on Tuesday.
The NRIs expressed concern that many of the persons who had immigrated abroad were unable to visit Punjab and pay obeisance at the Golden Temple and other holy places in the state as they were declared proclaimed offenders on account of their inability to appear before courts in certain cases.
Chief Minister Singh also assured the visiting NRI of consulting the Centre to examine the feasibility of setting up such special courts in some overseas Indian missions like those in the UK, Canada, Germany, France and the USA, the home to a large Punbjabi population.
Capt Amarinder also urged the diaspora to join his government''s efforts in leading the state to a new era of development.
He also appreciated the Punjabi diaspora for making Punjab and India proud with their work in different parts of the world.
Referring to his Government''s flagship programme ''Connect With Your Roots'', the chief minister thanked the NRIs for motivating their children to participate in the initiative while also
urging them to encourage more youngsters to visit Punjab and connect with their ancestral legacy.
He also congratulated the entire Sikh community, especially the NRIs, on the historic opening of the Kartarpur Corridor days ahead of the 550th anniversary the Prakash Parv.
