BJP leader Jagmohan Raju has defended his decision to seek an appointment with Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann, saying he requested the meeting to urge the admission of nearly 100,000 poor and Scheduled Caste children under the Right to Education Act.
Raju had recently resigned from the post of vice-president of the Punjab BJP, days after the party appointed a former Congress leader as its state chief.
In a letter addressed to the Chief Minister, he wrote: “I am fully aware that Sri Akal Takht Sahib has declared the Chief Minister ‘Guru Dokhi’ and ‘Panth Virodhi’ and has directed Sikhs not to have any association with him. As a Sikh, I hold Sri Akal Takht Sahib in the highest reverence. Yet, when the educational future of nearly one lakh poor Dalit children is at stake, I cannot stay silent on the issue.”
“I understand that meeting the Chief Minister right now may cause backlash and invite displeasure from Sri Akal Takht Sahib. However, when it comes to children and their future, I am ready to bear the brunt and face all consequences,” he said.
Earlier, on June 15, Akal Takht declared Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann ‘Guru Dokhi’ and ‘Khalsa Panth Virodhi’ after officiating Jathedar Giani Kuldeep Singh Gargaj presided over a meeting of the five Singh Sahibans in Amritsar.
The clergy cited a controversial video that allegedly showed Mann sprinkling alcohol on a portrait of the 10 Sikh Gurus and an image of Jarnail Singh Bhindranwale, allegations that Mann has strongly denied.
Mann has rejected the edict and denied that he was the person seen in the video. In a video message, he accused people occupying the highest religious positions of indulging in false propaganda at the behest of their political bosses to defame him.
Neither the BJP nor the Chief Minister Mann’s office has responded to Raju’s move so far.
Also read: Forensic evidence shows person in video is not Mann: AAP
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