Captain Amarinder Singh warns Badal against pushing Punjab into constitutional crisis

Congress Deputy Leader Capt Amarinder Singh warned Punjab Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal on Friday against pushing the state towards a constitutional crisis by not only by abdicating his authority and responsibility as chief minister of the state, but also by building up an explosive situation that has the potential to spiral out control only to satisfy his personal ego and vested interests.

"Chief Ministers are expected to adopt the constitutional means and methods and not resort to extra-constitutional blackmail which Mr Badal is trying to thrust", he remarked, while referring to the protest Mr. Badal was planning to lead against the setting up of a separate Haryana SGPC.

Asserting that Mr Badal was trying to force the Akali Dal against the Haryana Sikhs, Capt. Amarinder questioned the very logic of his protest against the Haryana SGPC, saying it was the part of Congress manifesto in 2004 and 2009 in response to the demand made by the Sikhs there. He said, it was wrong to drag anybody like the Congress president Ms Sonia Gandhi into the issue.

"Better you be cautious that in the mad pursuit of seeking the dismissal of Haryana government you may end up forcing your alliance partners to consider the dismissal of your own government as they (the NDA) also don't seem to be happy about the way you are trying to push the state towards anarchy and chaos", he warned Mr Badal, while asking him to give up his childish intransigence and reconsider his congregation in the interest of peace in the state of which he happens to be the chief minister.

"Chief Ministers are better seen governing and running the administration and not running away from it", he told Mr Badal while asserting that he (Mr Badal) was actually trying to abdicate his authority and run away from his responsibilities as he had apparently realised that the situation in the state was beyond his control.

Capt Amarinder said, there was a sense of unease, uncertainty, fear and panic among the people the way situation was being build up by Mr Badal at Amritsar. "People have started relating these developments to what happened during early eighties that pushed Punjab into a dark decade that only saw the indiscriminate killings of Punjabis", he warned while suggesting to Mr Badal to adopt constitutional means than adopting a intransigent extra-constitutional ways.

Referring to the planned Sunday congregation, Capt Amarinder asked Mr Badal, "do you take the responsibility about what will happen there or you will behave as you always have been by provoking and pushing people into the problem and running yourself away". He pointed out, "imagine if there is an untoward incident, a law and order problem as there is every apprehension, will the police be able to act with the Chief Minister who happens to be the effective head of the state at the forefront of the protest".