Cong demands President's rule, resignation of Sukhbir

Congress today demanded that President's rule be imposed in Punjab and Deputy Chief Minister Sukhbir Singh Badal resign taking the responsibility of the death of two youths in police firing during protests over alleged desecration of a holy book.
AICC general secretary Shakeel Ahmed who along with Punjab unit president Partap Singh Bajwa has been deputed by the party high command to take stock of the situation alleged that "law and order and intelligence set up in the state has completely collapsed".
"The Congress high command has deputed me and Partap Singh Bajwa to take stock of the situation...Regarding the demands of Sikhs over the alleged desecration of Sri Guru Granth Sahib Ji. President's rule must be imposed in Punjab," Ahmed said.

Asking Punjab Deputy Chief Minister Sukhbir Singh Badal and DGP S S Saini to take the responsibility of the incident, he said the episode could have been avoided had they acted in time and solved the case of the missing scripture.
"Everybody has a right to protest and it can be done peacefully," Bajwa said while terming police action as "insensitive and miscalculated".
"Sukhbir, as the Home Minister, must own the moral responsibility and quit," he said in a statement.

Suspecting that Akali leaders ordered police to open fire on protesters, Bajwa said the administration must disclose who directed security personnel to take action against agitators.

Early this week, two persons were killed and 75 injured in clashes between activists of Sikh outfits and police over the alleged sacrilege of holy book Guru Granth Sahib at Butter Kana village in Moga district, Kotkapura and Behbal Kalan in Faridkot district.
Police had booked about 500 people under various sections of the IPC in connection with the clashes.
The Deputy CM earlier today directed the police to withdraw all cases registered against protesters.