LUDHIANA, Punjab, India: Union Home Minister Buta Singh said here that a Bill was being introduced to debar political parties with religious and communal background from taking part in politics.
The draft was being prepared for the purpose and the Bill would be moved in the Lok Sabha shortly.
‘Addressing a convention of the Punjab Pradesh Congress Committee (I) at Guru Nanak Stadium, Mr. Buta Singh made a vehement attack on the Akali Dal and other political parties with religious and communal outlook.
With this convention, the mass contact programme launched by the PPCC (1) on November 1 comes to an end. The convention was convened to coincide with the birth anniversary of Mrs. Indira Gandhi Mr. Buta Singh said the Prime Minister had held discussions with Opposition leaders on the issue of separating religion from politics and it was agreed that a legislation should be introduced in this regard.
The Home Minister said the unity and integrity of the country ‘would be preserved at all costs. Making a scathing attack on the leadership of the Akali Dal, he said that the “Dharma youth morcha’” served to spread hate among the masses instead of spreading the message of the Gurus. The Akalis had played havoc with the Punjabis in particular and the nation in general, he alleged.
‘The Akali Dal, he said, was responsible for the crisis in the State; The Akali Dal leadership had deliberately backed out from reaching any agreement to solve the Punjab tangle. He revealed that when tripartite discussion on the river waters issue were on and a solution was being evolved, Mr. Gurcharan Singh Tohra was called out of the meeting by someone and when he returned, he refused to accept the agreement. Instead, he declared the Sikh youths would get the demands conceded. On the same night, 17 railway stations were set on fire in Punjab, he added.
Mr. Buta Singh held Mr. Tohra squarely responsible for the pre= sent situation in Punjab:
He ruled out talks with the ‘Akali Dal and freedom fighters, till they declared their faith in the Constitution and unity and integrity of the country.
He did not agree with the proposal of Janata Party President Chandra Shekhar that the Centre should hold talks with the “Panthic Committee” and other freedom fighting organizations. Mr. Buta Singh maintained that the Akali Dal was a divided house and did not represent the Sikhs. “Should we talk to Mr. Parkash Singh Badal who went to the Harmandar Sahib only once during the past six years and that too to get Mr. Tohra elected as President of the SGPC”, he said, Criticizing Pakistan for supporting the freedom fighters, Mr. Buta Singh said all efforts by Pakistan to create communal tension would fail. He said this should be clear to Pakistan from the defeat its soldiers had met in Siachen only a few days ago at the hands of Indian troops under the command of a Sikh army officer.
Article extracted from this publication >> December 4, 1987
