Jalandhar — The ad hoc committee of the Akali Dal on Monday gave an ultimatum to the Union Government to release immediately all leaders and Sikh youths arrested after the Army operation in Amritsar. It also demanded the abolition of special courts and strong action against those responsible for the carnage that took place in Delhi and other parts of the country in November.
If the Government fails to concede its demands, the Akali Dal would be
Forced to take stern action.
Disclosing this to newsmen after the meeting of the ad hoc committee, Mr. Gurdev Singh, secretary of the party, however, did not disclose what type of action the Akali Dal proposed to take.
(A PTI report quoting Akali circles in Amritsar said that the party was likely to organize a long march from Anandpur Sahib to Delhi after the concluding of the annual Hola Mohalla fair there on March 8 to press for its demands.
(it is learnt that the five Sikh high priests would lead the procession. All the participants, including the high priests, would don saffron turbans, during the march).
In a resolution, the meeting held the Rajiv Government responsible for the riots that took place in Delhi and other parts of the country. It demanded a judicial inquiry into them.
The meeting, presided over by Mr. Surjan Singh Thekedar, passed seven resolutions.
It ridiculed the Prime Minister’s statement asking the Akali Dal to condemn violence and discontinue its connection with extremists, and described it as ‘only a joke.”
Article extracted from this publication >> February 22, 1985
