Bir Devinder to take up ITC fund issue with Akal Takht

Chandigarh, Sep 19 (UNI) Senior Congress MLA Bir Devinder Singh today said he would take up the issue of the acceptance of party funds by the Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) from ITC, a tobacco company with the Akal Takht Jathedar.

Lambasting the SAD in the Punjab Assembly, in the absence of the opposition Akali-BJP members, Mr Bir Devinder Singh said it was a sin for the Akali party to take funds from a tobacco company as the SAD regarded itself as the religious representative of the Sikhs, besides being a political party.

The entire proceeding of the House was today conducted in the absence of the opposition Akali-BJP members as they had been suspended following pandemonium last Friday.

Mr Bir Devinder Singh said it was the Amarinder Singh government which had succeeded in bringing entrepreneurship and investment from outside and the IT Park at Mohali was a true example of this.

The youth of Punjab were getting employment on a large scale at the call centres in Mohali, which was the achievement of the present government, he added.

On the other hand, the Congress MLA stated that the Akalis had always been exploiting the religious sentiments of the people of the state.

And when the Akalis got a chance to form a government in 1998, they looted the state exchequer and failed to build up an atmosphere of development.

Meanwhile, a report from Fatehgarh Sahib said the Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD-Longowal) today appealed to Akal Takht Jathedar Giani Joginder Singh Vidanti, to summon SAD (Badal) Chief Prakash Singh Badal to the Takht as his party had received donations from ITC, a tobacco company.

A memorandum in this context was presented to the Jathedar by senior SAD (Longowal) and SGPC member Karnail Singh Panjoli here today.

Though the name of 35 SGPC members were mentioned on the memorandum, there were only the signatures of 12 SGPC members on it.

UNI PS XC RA VC2132