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Khalra’s murderers were convicted only through SAD’s efforts: Sukhbir
Claims that the sole witness’s family was also given a job by the Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee
Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) president Sukhbir Singh Badal on Saturday claimed that only the Parkash Singh Badal-led government facilitated the conditions that led to the conviction of human rights activist Jaswant Singh Khalra’s murderers, while alleging that the successive Congress and AAP governments only helped free them.
Addressing a press conference here, Sukhbir Badal said a deliberate misinformation campaign had been initiated to defame the party in the case. “The sole witness, special police officer Kuldeep Singh Bachra Bachra, did not come forward to record his statement during the Congress rule due to intense pressure from both the political and police administration,” he claimed.
The turning point came in 1997 when the SAD government took over and supported him, he claimed, adding that the Shiromani Committee gave him legal and financial support, which gave him courage to record his statement in court and led to conviction of accused police officers. He further claimed that Bachra’s family was also given a job by the Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee (SGPC).
Asserting that the SAD had raised the issue of Khalra’s abduction immediately, the SAD president said, “The SGPC wrote to the President and the Supreme Court while then party leader Manpreet Singh Badal raised the issue in the Vidhan Sabha. The Supreme Court treated the SGPC’s representation as a habeas corpus plea and directed the CBI to probe the case, leading to the arrest of the accused police officers.”
