Default bail to accused in missing saroops case shows AAP govt’s incompetence: Khaira

Jalandhar: Congress MLA Sukhpal Singh Khaira said the grant of default bail to an accused in the case of 328 missing saroops of Guru Granth Sahib is a glaring example of the Bhagwant Mann govt's incompetence, negligence and lack of seriousness in dealing with sacrilege-related cases.Khaira met Arshdeep Singh, 21-year-old Congress supporter who was recently arrested by Tanda police in Hoshiarpur, for allegedly disrespecting AAP's election symbol broom with the DDR mentioning the alleged act as ‘beadbi'. He said while Arshdeep was arrested for ‘beadbi' of the ruling party's election symbol, the AAP govt betrayed people of Punjab in delivering justice in the sacrilege cases of 2015 and failed to file even a chargesheet in the missing saroops case. "The AAP govt is more concerned in protecting its political symbol than ensuring justice in cases involving the religious sentiments of the Sikh community," he said.Khaira said chief minister Bhagwant Mann's recent ‘Shukrana Yatra', undertaken in the name of the new anti-sacrilege law, was nothing more than a political stunt aimed at misleading the people of Punjab. "Had the govt been genuinely serious about sacrilege cases, it would have ensured a professional and time-bound investigation and timely filing of the chargesheet in this crucial case rather than allowing the accused to obtain default bail due to official negligence," he said in the presence of former MLA Sangat Singh Giljian, district Congress committee president Daljit Singh Giljian and other Congress workers.He also demanded strict action against the officers responsible for the failure to file the chargesheet within the prescribed period so that such negligence is not repeated in future.