Punjab Congress legislative Party (ClP) on Tuesday registered its dissatisfaction over the enquiry marked by the Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal in the officer-MlA controversy with the Vidhan Sabha Speaker Charanjit Singh Atwal.
Atwal, responding to the demands of the Opposition Congress, assured the MlAs to “take over the issue” involving the issue of protocol.
ClP leader Sunil Kumar Jakhar, leading the delegation, demanded that the enquiry by the Patiala Divisional Commissioner Ajit Singh Pannu, ordered by the Chief Minister, should be called off, maintaining that asking a commissioner-level officer to conduct an inquiry is an attempt to undermine the standard protocol that places a legislator above the Chief Secretary.
Going into background of the matter, a woman officer, Fatehgarh Sahib Sub-Divisional Magistrate (SDM) Pooja Syal Grewal had complained to her Deputy Commissioner alleging that local Congress MlA Kuljit Singh Nagra had misbehaved with her and used abusive language during a meeting over civic issues in Sirhind town.
Nagra, on his part, had alleged that the SDM misbehaved with him in front of other people and undermined his position as a public representative.He claimed that when he went to meet the SDM over some civic problems being faced by the people, she reprimanded them from taking the issues to the legislator and told them to get in touch with her directly, that angered the Congress legislator who objected to the statement.
Making it clear that the Congress is not against any government official, Jakhar said that the party and all its leaders and MlAs respect the officers, especially the female officers, “but any attempt to muzzle the voice of the opposition would not be tolerated”.
Taking on the SAD-BJP Government over the State’s poor fiscal situation, Jakhar offered to accompany the coalition leaders to take up the state’s issue with the Centre.
“Punjab’s money should be given to the state…we are ready to go with them and meet the Central Ministers, if they want that, but only on one condition that government should give all details of Rs193 crore it received from the UPA Government for water logging,” said Jakhar.