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Slain singer’s first ‘barsi’: Action against Amritpal planned to muzzle dissent, say Moose Wala’s parents
Parents of the slain Punjabi singer-turned-politician Shubhdeep Singh aka Sidhu Moose Wala on Sunday came in support of the Waris Punjab De chief Amritpal Singh and raised questions on the timing of police action against the latter
Parents of the slain Punjabi singer-turned-politician Shubhdeep Singh aka Sidhu Moose Wala on Sunday came in support of the Waris Punjab De chief Amritpal Singh and raised questions on the timing of police action against the latter.
Addressing a gathering of Moose Wala’s fans, members of various religious and political organisations at the new grain market, the late singer’s family said a police crackdown on activists of Waris Punjab De was “planned deliberately” to coincide with their son’s first barsi.
“Assi ghulam haan (We are slaves). Punjab government is not concerned to bring justice to the killing of our son,” said Moose Wala’s mother Charan Kaur. Raising slogans against Punjab and the BJP-led Centre government from the dais, they said the mobile telephony in Punjab was suspended only to suppress the voice to expose the government’s failure to act against Goldy Brar, the alleged main perpetrator of Moose Wala’s murder on May 29, 2022.
Charan Kaur, sarpanch of Moosa village, said Amritpal has been engaged in religious and social activities while efforts are being made to malign him under a conspiracy.
“He is not involved in any unwanted activity. But he is being painted as an anti-social man. Government remained silent for the last several months and the police action against Amritpal started only on the eve of our son’s death anniversary,” she added.
Moose Wala was shot dead by the persons associated with jailed gangster Lawrance Bishnoi.
Although barsi is traditionally held after 11 months of death but Moose Wala’s family planned it a month early in view of wheat harvesting time when people remain busy in fields.
The slain singer’s father, Balkaur Singh said that the state government disrupted the mobile internet services on “flimsy grounds” in a bid to suppress voice of dissent but a gangster like Bishnoi has gone to extent of giving television interviews through video calls from the jail, he added.
“He (Bishnoi) was the man behind the murder of Sidhu (as Balkaur calls his son) and admitted his crime on TV. Bishnoi was heard giving open threats to harm actor Salman Khan but no action has been taken by the Punjab Police to get into depth of the serious matter. What matters to the Punjab government is to suspend internet and bus services to derail barsi of our son,” he added.
Balkaur said that he was apprehensive of low footfall at Moose Wala’s mourning gathering due to actions taken in the name of arresting Amritpal. “But the gathering infused confidence that we cannot be bowed down by the government agencies,” he said.
Balkaur named a close aide of chief minister Bhagwant Mann for maligning Moose Wala by terming him “a controversial singer”, even after his murder and the state authorities are not willing to take action against him, he added.
“It is serious that extortionists are running their racket even from the jails and the state authorities remain a mute spectators. I served the Indian Army for years but now I am being harassed while demanding justice. It is shocking that Punjab CM claimed information of Goldy Brar’s arrest in the USA but Brar rushed to a journalist for an interview and mocked the CM. Even 10 months after my son’s murder, the government agencies cannot bring him back from foreign soil,” he added.
Punjab Congress president Amrinder Singh Raja Warring, leader of Opposition and Quadian MLA Partap Bajwa and Sangrur MP Simranjit Singh Mann were among the key political dignitaries who attended the function.
