Rajnath asks for pledge from youth to rid State of drugs

Punjab Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal, during a religious congregation at the ‘City of Bliss’ on the commemoration of 350 years of its foundation on Friday, came all out in open to respond to the allegations on the Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) of pursuing panthic agenda by organising the mega event and journey of guru’s relics in the State.

He also found support of the Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh who asked Badal to continue his work without caring about allegations of pursuing a communal agenda. “Shiromani Akali Dal is not pursuing a communal agenda,” he said during his address.Badal lamented, “Sikhs who are known for their unmatched patriotism, religious tolerance and compassion have been unfortunately branded as communal. On the contrary, the community is a staunch follower of the teachings of great Sikh gurus, who propagated the concept of religious freedom, secularism and socialism.”

“The people who sought inspiration from the ideology preached by great Sikh gurus like Arjun Dev, Guru Teg Bahadur and Guru Gobind Singh, who sacrificed everything even their life and family for the sake of mankind, how could they be dubbed as terrorists and secessionists,” he said.Badal said that the Akali Dal was the only party in the country which was a staunch votary of ‘unite and rule’ by dispelling the image of political outfits so far, which believed in the policy of ‘divide and rule’ to pursue their political ambitions.

“The party has derived inspiration from the philosophy and ideology of great Sikh gurus, which preached the message of oneness of God and unity of mankind, thus the SAD has proved to be a unifying force to take all the communities irrespective of caste, colour and creed along to pursue the ultimate agenda of overall development of the State and prosperity of the people,” he said.

Asserting that SAD was bound by this principle, he said that was why the State Government celebrated all the major events related to the gurus, saints and spiritual ambassadors of every religion with full respect and enthusiasm.“Now, our party wish to take this philosophy of oneness of mankind at pan India level by organizing functions at national level to propagate the legacy and ideology of these great bhagats (saints) whose bani has been included in Guru Grant Sahib,” he said adding that these functions would be organized in various parts of the country from which these saints originally hailed from.

“A mega event would be held in Pune in the memory of Bhagat Namdev, another at Varanasi in Uttar Pradesh in the memory of Guru Ravidass and Bhagat Kabir, Jaidev in Kolkatta, Bhagat Peepa and Bhagat Dhanna in Jaipur (Rajasthan),” he said.SUKHBIR ASKS CENTRE TO DElIVER JUSTICE FOR 84’ RIOTS VICTIMSPunjab Deputy Chief Minister and SAD president Sukhbir Badal on Friday sought expeditious trials, justice and relief to the victims of 1984 Sikh riots.

“Since last 30 years, Sikhs have been waiting for justice with their wounds are still simmering,” he said while appealing to the NDA Government to ensure justice to Sikhs as well as Punjab.

He also sought that the legitimate issues pertaining to Punjab should be resolved at the earliest with the due consultation of all stakeholders.

Sukhbir, addressing the massive gathering, said that the establishment of Anandpur Sahib marked the spread of message of peace and universal brotherhood besides the need to stand up to tyranny and injustice.

Punjabis has always acted in the path shown by the great gurus and that they had remained forerunners in all struggles whether against the Mughals, British regime or the fight for Sikh causes.Describing SAD as the second oldest political party in the country, he said that it had always fought for the interests and rights of farmers, labourers and deprived sections of the society.

He said that Punjabis had more than 80 percent contribution in independence struggle besides being awarded the maximum sentences, including imprisonment at the cellular jail in Andaman and Nicobar Islands.He also lauded Punjabi fraternity for contributing more than 60 percent food grains in the national food kitty despite constituting only two percent of entire population of the country.Sukhbir lamented that despite excellent performance and immense contribution in various fields besides protecting the international borders, Punjab did not get its due recognition from previous regimes.