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Congress MP Ravneet Singh Bittu writes to PM Narendra Modi opposing demand for Rajoana’s release
In a two-page letter, Congress MP Ravneet Singh Bittu urged Prime Minister Narendra Modi not to accept the demand for the release of Rajoana and other “dreaded terrorists”
: Congress MP Ravneet Singh Bittu on Tuesday wrote to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, strongly opposing the demand for release of Balwant Singh Rajoana, who is serving jail term for assassinating former Punjab chief minister Beant Singh.
In his two-page letter, Bittu urged the Prime Minister not to accept the demand for the release of Rajoana and other “dreaded terrorists” that could threaten the internal security situation in Punjab and have devastating ramifications for the future.
“Any favourable decision on giving clemency to Rajoana, the assassin of a sitting chief minister of a state will send a very wrong message and further embolden the enemies of the country to give shape to their sinister plots against our motherland,” he wrote.
The Ludhiana MP, who is the grandson of Beant Singh, sent the missive a day after Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) chief Sukhbir Singh Badal urged the Prime Minister to ensure Rajoana’s release.
The SAD chief also asked him to fulfil the promise made on the eve of the 550th Parkash Purab of Guru Nanak Dev in 2019 for the release of eight Sikh prisoners who have served more than the life sentence. Earlier, SAD MP Harsimrat Badal had also raised the issue in Lok Sabha.
Bittu alleged that the real intention of these leaders was to somehow generate unrest and cause harm to him, his family members and to their political adversaries.
Alleging a sinister design, he requested the PM to intervene and direct the authorities to conduct a detailed inquiry into this extremely sensitive matter.
The Congress MP also strongly suggested that the government should ponder over introducing a comprehensive policy through legislation etc to ensure that the execution of sentences granted to such convicts should not be prolonged for long periods to somehow create a wrong perception of victimhood in their favour.
