Akali Dal chief Sukhbir Badal, party leaders detained by Punjab Police

Chandigarh, July 2 (IANS) Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) President Sukhbir Singh Badal along with his party leaders and activists were detained by the Punjab Police on Wednesday as they were heading towards Mohali, near here, to express solidarity with arrested party leader Bikram Singh Majithia, who would be produced in a court later in the day.

Badal accused the Bhagwant Mann-led AAP government of imposing an “undeclared emergency” in the state.

Also, he slammed AAP convener Arvind Kejriwal for killing the democratic rights of Punjabis.

Angered by Badal’s detention, party leaders and workers raised slogans against the government and staged a sit-in protest on a road.

Akali Dal former Minister Majithia, was arrested last week by the Vigilance Bureau on charges of laundering more than Rs 540 crore of drug money. He will be produced in a court as his seven-day remand comes to an end. Heavy police deployment has been made outside the district court complex in Mohali.

Majithia, who has been saying the cases were politically motivated, is the brother of former Union Minister Harsimrat Kaur Badal and brother-in-law of Akali Dal President Badal.

Investigations by the Special Investigation Team (SIT) of the police probing the first information report (FIR) of 2021 and the Vigilance Bureau revealed massive laundering of drug money facilitated by Majithia, the government has said.

Preliminary investigations revealed that more than Rs 540 crore drug money has been laundered through several ways, including a huge unaccounted cash of Rs 161 crore deposited in bank accounts of companies controlled by Majithia, channelisation of Rs 141 crore through suspected foreign entities and excess deposition of Rs 236 crore without disclosure or explanation in company financial statements.

Also, the government said there is an acquisition of movable and immovable assets by Majithia without any legitimate source of income.

A day earlier, Cabinet minister Tarunpreet Sondh accused the BJP-led Central government of obstructing Punjab’s efforts to bring Majithia to justice and raised serious concerns about the motives behind such actions.

He said the Vigilance Bureau is conducting an in-depth investigation into Majithia’s disproportionate assets and their funding sources.

“Punjab Police, in full legal compliance, went to Delhi to conduct raids on Majithia’s properties to collect documents and evidence. However, the Delhi Police, which operates under the BJP, denied Punjab Police permission to conduct these raids,” he told the media here.

The minister questioned the BJP’s intentions, asking, “Is the BJP now actively aiding Bikram Majithia? Are they shielding him in exchange for political gains?”

He alleged that the BJP has struck a secret deal with Majithia to save him in return for his future allegiance to the party. “We have received credible reports that the BJP has assured Majithia of their support in his case, with the condition that he joins the BJP, and in the coming days, the BJP wants an alliance with the Akali Dal,” Sondh added.

--IANS

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