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Take whatever action, I will contest LS polls: Parampal
The 59-year-old Sidhu, who remained busy on Wednesday canvassing and held election meetings at various places in Mansa district, a constituent of the Bathinda parliamentary seat
A day after the Punjab government issued a notice instructing her to resume duty or face action, Parampal Kaur Sidhu, a Punjab-cadre IAS officer and the BJP candidate from Bathinda Lok Sabha, said on Wednesday that there is no question of joining back as the Centre has already approved her resignation.
The 59-year-old Sidhu, who remained busy on Wednesday canvassing and held election meetings at various places in Mansa district, a constituent of the Bathinda parliamentary seat, said that the state government cannot dictate to a retiree person how to lead her or his life post-retirement. Parampal said that the government is free to take any action it can and asserted that she will contest the Lok Sabha elections.
“Government has no business in meddling with my personal life and priorities I opt for in my retired life. I will furnish a reply after the elections as no timeframe was mentioned in the notice for a response. But the notice is uncalled for and unwarranted and I will not hesitate to approach the court if the state continues coercive measures against me,” she added.
Sidhu said that her nomination filing date will be finalised soon after she gets the confirmation on the availability of a senior BJP leader in Bathinda.
“I will not resume duties again. The Central government has accepted my resignation and I will contest the election from Bathinda and file my nominations soon,” she added.
In a notice issued to Sidhu on Tuesday, the Punjab government, under directions from chief minister Bhagwant Mann, said that against the sanctioned strength of 231, only 192 IAS officers are currently on the Punjab cadre, and she is required to rejoin the service.
Sidhu accused the AAP government of ‘hypocrisy’ and said that the reason for the lesser number of bureaucrats holds no water as several IAS and PCS officers are without postings.
The 2011-batch ex-IAS officer, Parampal is the daughter-in-law of Akali veteran Sikander Singh Maluka and was due to retire in October this year. She was posted as managing director of the Punjab state industrial development corporation. She applied for premature retirement in April and was later named as the BJP candidate from Bathinda.
