Gangster-turned-activist Lakha Sidhana on Monday met Punjab’s minister for jails, Sukhjinder Singh Randhawa, and gave him suggestions for reforms, but also left him red-faced with digs at chief minister Captain Amarinder Singh and the Congress government.
Sidhana had taken an appointment with the minister “to share his personal experience inside jails and suggest necessary changes”. Officials said Sidhana invited some media channels, too, to the Markfed office where Randhawa held the meeting. Things turned awry for Randhawa when Sidhana, in his presence, gave interviews to multiple channels in which he raised some questions, chief among them being on the commitment of the government to eradicate the drug menace.
Saying that he is a “fan” of Randhwa’s “style of immediate disposal of issues”, Sidhana said his appreciation for Randhawa “should not be taken as praise for Congress”. Sidhana had contested the 2012 assembly elections on the ticket of People’s Party of Punjab (PPP) that was merged into the Congress before last year’s polls by its leader Manpreet Singh Badal, who is now the state’s finance minister.
{{/usCountry}}Saying that he is a “fan” of Randhwa’s “style of immediate disposal of issues”, Sidhana said his appreciation for Randhawa “should not be taken as praise for Congress”. Sidhana had contested the 2012 assembly elections on the ticket of People’s Party of Punjab (PPP) that was merged into the Congress before last year’s polls by its leader Manpreet Singh Badal, who is now the state’s finance minister.
{{/usCountry}}“I am also questioning why Amarinder has downsized special task force (STF) head Harpreeet Sindh Sidhu after he conducted a probe against former Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) minister Bikram Singh Majithia in the drug case,” Sidhana said.
Standing next to him, Sidhana asked Randhawa about his allegations of drug peddling against Akalis. “When in opposition, Congress used to say chitta (‘white powder’ or heroin) is supplied in red-beacon (official) vehicles of Akali leaders! I ask them (government), and even the minister (Randhawa): What’s wrong now? Why has there been no action against those leaders?”
At this, Randhawa intervened with claims that the government will take action against Majithia. “The probe against Majithia was completed on the directions of the chief minister. Whatever action I am taking against illegal activities in jails is also on the directions of the CM,” he said.
Impulse on display
Earlier, in discussion with the minister, Sidhana told him that his department had deputed a “tainted” officer as superintendent of the high-security jail at Nabha, and said the officer is facing a case of attempt to murder. He asked the minister to call up additional director general of police (ADGP), jails, IPS Sahota to order his “removal”.
When Randhawa called, the ADGP told him it’s not entirely true. “I told Sir (minister) that it’s an old case of ‘culpable homicide not amounting to murder’. In that case, too, various probes have already been conducted and the officer, who was suspended for a few months, was reinstated later,” the ADGP told HT.
After the episode, Randhawa, when contacted, explained, “As he is a former gangster, I only gave time to him to listen to his experiences inside jails. But a section of electronic media took the issue to a different direction. And I never asked the ADGP to suspend Bhullar. I only ordered to probe the matter and submit a detailed report.”