SAD protest outside Punjab CM's house; Sukhbir Singh Badal detained
Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) chief Sukhbir Singh Badal was detained during a protest outside Punjab Chief Minister Captain Amarinder Singh's farmhouse in Siswan on Tuesday. The party demands the dismissal of the state Health Minister Balbir Singh Sidhu. It also demands a Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) probe into alleged irregularities in the procurement of COVID-19 medical kits and the sale of vaccines.
The SAD also demands land acquisition for national highways at market rates and compensation for the displacement of affected landowners. SAD spokesperson Daljit Singh Cheema accused the Punjab government of running scams, claiming they were profiting from their misery during a pandemic. Under the Fateh kit scam, the prices of medical kits were allegedly hiked from Rs. 800 to Rs. 1,400.
Before his detention, Badal said, "If a storm rises, Captain won't be able to stop it, even if he uses all his force. There's a scam in vaccinations. There's a scam in Fateh kits. There's a scam in SC scholarship. Farmers' land is being acquired."
Hindustan Times quoted Cheema as saying, "The Congress government has admitted its fault that it sold vaccines to private hospitals at huge margins and in turn allowed them to charge a premium. Instead of dismissing the health minister, Captain Amarinder Singh is shielding him and trying to silence the opposition by registering cases against senior Akali leaders for holding a peaceful and democratic protest..."
On Monday, the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) had led a protest outside the CM's official residence, accusing it of misappropriating post-matric scholarship funds. The protesters had demanded the dismissal of cabinet minister Sadhu Singh Dharamsot. Several of them were detained and later released. Cheema and AAP Punjab affairs co-in-charge Raghav Chadha had described the police action as the "murder of democracy."
