Chandigarh: Things turned ugly between BJP leaders even before the Punjab Budget Session begun this Monday after Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) leaders protested and set ablaze Cabinet minister Navjot Singh Sidhu’s photographs of his visit to Pakistan.
Cabinet Minister Navjot Singh Sidhu was left alone to build his defence while the none of the Cabinet Ministers or Congressmen came to his side when the SAD leaders and the legislators sloganeered against him over his recent Pulwama attack remark, News18 reports.
As things turned ugly, Punjab finance minister Manpreet Badal was forced to cut short his budget presentation in the assembly.
According to reports the SAD leader Bikram Majithia and his supporters barged inside the house demanding the resignation of the Congress leader who had told a country (Pakistan) can’t be blamed for the actions of a few individuals, along with raising slogans against Sidhu.
Not only did the legislators inside the Assembly allowed this nuisance happen inside the House but some of them even stood up and joined the crowd protesting against Sidhu.
The verbal spat went on for 10 minutes. It was only during the last few minutes of the duel that party colleague Inderbir Singh Bolaria came to Sidhu’s rescue, subsequently, other Congress leaders, too, rose up as chaos in the House intensified.
Speaker of the House Rana KP Singh had to ask the House Marshals to escort the protesting members out of the House for the day’s proceedings.
As the House proceedings resumed at 1 pm, Manpreet Singh Badal continued with his budget speech.
Cabinet Minister Sidhu while reacting to the Pulwama attack where 40 CRPF lost their lives, had told: “Terrorism has no religion and no country”.
To that, Majitha asked: “Before everything else, we want to know the clear stand of the Congress and the Punjab government. Do they condemn the Pakistan Army Chief and Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan?”
“After passing a unanimous resolution in the House for condemning the Pulwama terror attack, Sidhu was still saying ‘You cannot blame Pakistan, you cannot blame individuals’,” Majithia added.