Punjab unit of the Bharatiya Janata Party on Tuesday asked the state Cabinet Minister Navjot Singh Sidhu to resign on moral grounds after he was held guilty by the Supreme Court under Section 323 of the Indian penal code (IPC) in a 1988 road rage case.
Noting that the Apex Court slapped Rs 1000 fine on the former cricketer while convicting him, the BJP leaders including Union Minister Vijay Sampla, party national vice-president Avinash Rai Khanna, former national secretary Harjit Singh Grewal and former state secretary Vineet Joshi said that Sidhu should quit the government as he had been convicted by the top court of the country for voluntarily causing hurt.
“Any form of violence is against the tenets of Sikhism. Sidhu represents the holy city of Amritsar which is the land of the great Gurus who always fought against injustice, oppression and violence. Since he has been convicted in a case involving violence, he should resign on moral grounds,” said the leaders.
Questioning Chief Minister Capt Amarinder and Punjab Congress president Sunil Jakhar's silence on Sidhu's conviction, BJP leaders underlined, “The conviction is conviction whether its punishment is in the shape of fine or imprisonment it doesn't matter."