CHANDIGARH: The Punjab Chief Minister, Beant Singh, last week, said he would meet the Prime Minister, P.V. Narasimha Rao, during the next few days to apprise him about the Katia abduction and molestation case which he described as “very un fortunate.””
In an informal chat with media persons here, he said it was wrong to say that he had described it as a minor incident.
The Chief Minister made it clear that he was prepared for investigation by any agency into this case. He reminded that he had promised action in the Vidhan Sabha even if the suspects included his grandson.
He denied the reports that he made his grandson, Gurkirat Singh, surrender under pressure from the Center and termed such reports appearing in the press were “absolutely baseless,” Referring to the delay in the surrender of his grandson to the police, he said Gurkirat was away for about four days and he himself asked him to present himself before the police.
Beant Singh said the Investigation was on and the law would take its own course.
Replying to a question about the likelihood of a change in the leadership of the Punjab Pradesh Congress Committee, Beant Singh, who also heads the state party unit, said, “I do not mind a change in the party leadership,” He clarified that the PPCC had at no point of time recommended to the party high command that keeping in view the special situation in the state, the principle of one man one post should not be implemented here. ‘The Chief Minister said the visit of the Union Agriculture Minister, Balram Jakhar, had nothing to do with the change in the PPCC leadership and he had come only to discuss the panchayat samiti and zila Parishad elections. He said the allegations leveled by his party MLA from Tam Taran, Dilbagh Singh Daleke, about the malpractices being indulged in by the Minister of State for Rural Development and Panchayats, Jagir Singh, in these elections were wrong. He said he had received the report in this regard from the deputy commissioner, Amritsar.
He disclosed the PPCC had finalized the list of candidates.
Article extracted from this publication >> September 23, 1994
