Pb CM slams SAD's claim of foiling govt appointments to Sidhu's wife, son

Punjab Chief Minister Amarinder Singh today hit out at the SAD for its claim to have foiled the Congress government's plan to give Navjot Singh Sidhu's wife and son jobs, saying the opposition party's "politically motivated" attack was "devoid of any substance".

Facing flak over the appointment of his son as law officer and wife as the chairperson of Punjab Warehousing Corporation, Punjab Cabinet minister Navjot Singh Sidhu yesterday said both his son and wife will not join the posts.

The announcement of cricketer-turned-politician came when opposition party SAD launched attack during on him and Congress led government, during Shahkot bypoll campaigning, for giving "jobs" to Sidhu's family rather than to any state youth.

The Amarinder Singh government had appointed the cricketer-turned-politician's wife, Navjot Kaur Sidhu, as chairperson of Punjab Warehousing Corporation last month, while his son Karan Sidhu was appointed as an assistant advocate general and his name figured in the list of 28 law officers appointed by the state government on May 24.

Reacting sharply to the Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) spokesperson Daljit Singh Cheema's comment that his party has foiled the government's plan to give the Sidhu family jobs by highlighting the matter, Amarinder Singh said there was no question of backing out of the decision.

The government stands by its decision on the appointment of Sidhu's wife and son, the chief minister said, adding whether to accept or reject the offer was the decision of the Sidhu family.

"The Akali leader's desperate effort to give a political twist to the entire matter has once again shown that the party is bereft of any serious issues and is desperately clawing at non-issues in the face of imminent defeat in the Shahkot bypoll (due tomorrow)," he said in a statement here.

Pointing out that Karan Sidhu was selected for Assistant AG's post by the AG after 13 months of work in the latter's office and that too free of cost, Amarinder Singh said, "It is none of the SAD's business to whom the government gives jobs."