There was a second attempt on the life of Shiromani Akali Dal president Sukhbir Singh Badal. This time again it was at one of the holy places of the Sikhs, the Hazur Sahib in Nanded in Maharashtra where he had gone to pay obeisance along with his family. Had it not been for the alertness of one of the Maharashtra Police cops, the attacker could have caused serious damage as he had aimed his sword at Badal’s stomach.
While the law will take its own course, there must not be any concessions, any leniency with the culprit, whose aim was clearly to cause grave harm to the senior Akali leader’s life. Attempts are already being made to glorify the assailant and justify his act, which is unacceptable. In fact, the Sikh community as a whole must not approve of such acts, which have no justification, leave aside allowing their glorification.
There is a reason why Badal has become the prime target of the radicals. Both the attacks on his life were carried out by the radicals. Badal, like his father Prakash Singh Badal, has unfailingly always espoused a moderate agenda. Despite heading a ‘panthic’ party, the Shiromani Akali Dal, his agenda has never been sectarian. So much so, he even opened the doors of the party for the non-Sikhs. At one time in 2012, there were, at least, ten Hindu MLAs representing the Shiromani Akali Dal in the Punjab assembly.
Actually, the Shiromani Akali Dal represents the true Sikh spirit. Sikhs by innate nature are moderate and progressive. They don’t espouse or encourage radicalism. The radical fringe cannot define them. That is best explained the way an overwhelming majority of the Sikhs have never been averse to non-panthic parties like the Congress and also the Aam Aadmi Party. The two parties together have more Sikh supporters than all the Akali organisations put together.
There might have been certain political miscalculations and wrong judgements on part of Badal, which may not have been to the liking of a lot of Sikhs. For example, the appointment of Sumedh Singh Saini as the Director General of Punjab Police, pardon granted to the Dera Sacha Sauda chief Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh and the mishandling of the sacrilege of Guru Granth Sahib, were all errors of judgement that any one in his place could have made. Badal has already paid a heavy price for that. His party has lost two back-to-back elections and has now been completely marginalized.
That is how the political parties and leaders get penalized or punished in a democracy. People get one chance in five years and the Punjabis in general and the Sikhs in particular used these chances making the Shiromani Akali Dal and Badal realise and introspect what they should have done and what they should not have done.
Despite having been pushed to the margins, the Shiromani Akali Dal has not given up on its moderate agenda for a radical one. Even when there is a growing traction among a section of Sikhs for the jailed radical MP Amritpal, who got elected to the parliament from Khadoor Sahib constituency while being in jail, Badal and his party have not succumbed to the radical temptations. That is the reason he has been targeted for the second time within a span of two years.
Also read: Sukhbir Badal attacked in Nanded, assailant held
The second murderous attack on Badal should serve as a wake up call for the Punjabis that the alternative to a moderate Akali Dal will be an extremist and radical Akali Dal that has its own agenda, which for sure cannot be and will not be in the interest of Punjab, Punjabis and Punjabiyat.
Compare what Badal is accused of having done and has actually done and what the Congress has done. Badal is “guilty” of appointing Saini as the police chief, getting pardon granted to dera chief and mishandling of the protests following the sacrilege of the Guru Granth Sahib. Such a strong and powerful anti-Badal/Akali narrative has been built where not only has the moderate Akali Dal been pushed to margins politically, its leader has even been physically targeted, not once but twice. He actually had a providential escape on both occasions.
Compared to that, the Congress did pay the price with the lives of its leaders, with a sitting Prime Minister and a sitting Chief Minister having been assassinated in vengeance of Operation Bluestar and eliminating terrorism from Punjab. At the same time, the Congress no longer remains ostracized, the way the Akalis are being ostracised as outcasts. Congress still remains the principal political force in Punjab, while the Akali Dal has been pushed to the margins and is fighting for survival.
Radicals of any sort never like the moderates, whom they consider as their enemy number one. The radicals can and they mostly do go to any extent to get even with the moderates. Two attempts on Badal’s life are an example. For the radicals, a moderate Badal is a real threat. Moreover, he has been making a political comeback with a reasonably good presence in his political rallies, much to the chagrin of the radicals.
Punjabis in general and the Sikhs in particular must beware of the venomous narrative being built up that has the potential to threaten the peace and harmony of Punjab. Targeting Sukhbir Badal is part of the game. That is why the threat to his life must be taken seriously. Very seriously.
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