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Dismissal of Punjab Government sought

Anita Joshua

PCC alleges complete breakdown of law and order in the State

NEW DELHI: The Punjab Pradesh Congress Committee (PPCC) on Friday met President Pratibha Devisingh Patil to press for imposition of President’s rule in the State. Stating that there was a “complete breakdown of law and order and Constitutional scheme of governance in Punjab,” the PPCC in a memorandum said democracy was in peril and “pre-emptive imposition of President’s rule” was the only option. The delegation was led by PPCC president Rajinder Kaur Bhattal and a similar memorandum was presented to the Union Home Minister also.

‘Reign of terror’

While the memorandum traces the “reign of terror” unleashed by the Punjab Government on Congress workers from its first day in office, the immediate provocation for the demand for President’s rule is the violence during this week’s Zila Parishad and Panchayat Samiti elections. Workers of the Bharatiya Janata Party — allies of the Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) in the coalition government — were not spared in the memorandum.

“The returning officers were also pressured to rig elections to the extent that one returning officer in Tarn Taran committed suicide after the polling was over.”

Expressing surprise over the fact that the Governor had not apprised the Centre about the “ominous situation that is fast evolving” in Punjab, the PCC warned that the current dispensation in the State was taking it back to the dark days. In particular, the memorandum cites the call given by the Jathedar of Akal Takht Joginder Singh Vedanti for the establishment of Khalistan.

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