Dismiss Punjab government for sedition: Congress

Chandigarh, Jan 1 (IANS) The Punjab unit of the Congress Thursday sought the dismissal of the Parkash Singh Badal government, saying the Shiromani Akali Dal was inciting people against the security forces which was an anti-national act.

Punjab Congress president Pratap Singh Bajwa said the Congress will hold protests at all district headquarters Jan 5 to seek dismissal of the Badal government.

He said the decision of Deputy Chief Minister and Akali Dal president Sukhbir Singh Badal to hold protests on the sensitive international border with Pakistan Jan 5 was unprecedented and would demoralise the security forces.

"This would lead to public disorder and incite violence at the already tense India-Pakistan border and hence this action is seditious in nature. We will demand President's rule in Punjab," he said.

Bajwa demanded that Sukhbir Badal be booked for sedition for announcing that the Akali Dal will protest against the Border Security Force (BSF) for failing to curb drug smuggling in the state.

"The deeper design is to incite violence and disturb law and order with a clear intention to divert the public's attention from the complicity of his brother-in-law and Revenue Minister Bikram Singh Majithia and other cabinet colleagues in the Rs.6,000-crore synthetic drugs scam," he said.

Bajwa said the Akali Dal protest plan was aimed at countering BJP president Amit Shah's rally against drugs proposed to be held Jan 12 in Amritsar.

He said the Akali Dal and the Bharatiya Janata Party were only trying to fool people through their respective stand on drugs.