Union Minister of State for Railways and Food Processing Industries Ravneet Singh Bittu supported the demand for interim parole to jailed MP Amritpal Singh, who is currently lodged in Dibrugarh Central Jail in Assam under the National Security Act (NSA).
Bittu’s remarks, made to reporters outside Parliament in New Delhi on Tuesday, represent a notable departure from his earlier criticism of the chief of the ‘Waris Punab De’ outfit.
Bittu accused the AAP government in Punjab of obstructing Amritpal’s parole application, which was submitted for the second time in as many weeks to allow him to participate in House proceedings.
“The Punjab government is deliberately denying parole to an elected representative. If Engineer Rashid from Jammu and Kashmir could be granted custody parole to attend sessions despite serious charges, why is the same facility not extended to Amritpal Singh? Who will raise the voice of Khadoor Sahib?” Bittu asked.
He drew parallels to Engineer Rashid, the MP from Baramulla who has attended House sessions on interim bail while facing terror-financing charges. In a pointed effort to distance the BJP-led Central government from the controversy, Bittu stressed that decisions related to parole under the NSA lie with the state authorities.
“The Centre is not holding Amritpal behind bars. It is the Punjab government’s responsibility. Accusations against the BJP are baseless. We respect democratic mandates, but security cannot be compromised,” he said.
This appears to absolve the Union Home Ministry, which oversees NSA implementations, of direct culpability even as critics argue that the Act’s invocation in Amritpal’s case was a joint central-state operation. Bittu had earlier vouched for the release of Bandi Singhs, Sikh political prisoners jailed since the days of terrorism in Punjab.
₹17-lakh BBMB notice to Bittu over 2 houses
The Bhakra Beas Management Board (BBMB) authorities have issued a recovery notice of Rs 17.62 lakh to Minister of State for Railways Ravneet Bittu for the “illegal possession” of its houses in the Nangal Township Colony.
Bittu had been allotted two houses in the BBMB colony in Nangal when he was a Congress MP from the Anandpur Sahib parliamentary constituency from 2009 to 14). The houses, which still remain in Bittu’s name, currently house the Congress office.
BBMB officials said repeated notices had been sent to Bittu to vacate the houses, but to no avail. Since the houses were being occupied illegally in his name, the BBMB had been imposing penal rent on the property. As the rent has not been paid, officials sent a recovery notice of Rs 17.62 lakh to the minister.
Also read: Bittu rules out BJP alliance with SAD
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