LUDHIANA: Akali Dal (Badal) president Parkash Singh Badal, is contemplating suing Chief Minister Beant Singh and some of its ministers for leveling “wild and baseless allegations” against him. Talking to media persons at Issru, 55km from Ludhiana, on Aug.15, he termed as totally irresponsible, the charge of Agriculture Minister Dilbagh Singh kickback of R.s 88 lakh, in the purchase of a particular brand of tractors, when he was the Chief Minister .
Badal asked the minister why he kept quiet for two decades, if the charge was true and why no inquiry was held against him by the Congress government since then, similarly, he castigated the Chief Minister for alleging that he had militant links.
Wondering why no charge against him had been proved by the government, Badal said that he was consulting legal experts regarding taking the matter to the court to stop this mudslinging aimed at tarnishing his political image. At the same time he reminded the ruling party that it could not cover up corruption and many of its other misdeeds by painting his opponents in bad light.
Badal, who was here along with senior party leaders to reside over a public rally to pay tributes to Karnail Singh, hero with the Goa liberation of 1962, got a shot in the arm when a large number of traders particularly Hindu Congress man joined his party along With their supporters.
They included Subhash Chander Sharma, general secretary of the Sangre District Congress Committee, Kamail Singh and Sewa Singh, supporters of Simranjit Singh Mann from Khanna, former chairman of Khanna market committee Harchand Singh, Narinder Singh, former MLA Bachan Singh. Cheema.
From Doraha, Rajiv Chawla, joint, secretary of the Ludhiana District “Youth ‘Congress (urban) and Kastun Lal Aggarwal, an indus: trialist, joined Dal (B) along with 200 of their Hindu supporters and presented an amountof Rs.11, 000 to Badal, Another amount of 1100: was presented by Jagdish Sing Gill.
They said that rampant corruption in the state government and) the ruling party had prompted them: to change their party.
Article extracted from this publication >> August 19, 1994
