Chandigarh, February 8 The ruling AAP in Punjab on Sunday slammed Congress leader Partap Singh Bajwa, accusing him of making objectionable remarks against Cabinet Minister Harbhajan Singh.
However, Congress leaders rejected the charge and accused the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) of attempting to distort facts and misuse the sensitive issue of Dalits for political gain by leveling false allegations against Bajwa.
In a joint statement here, Finance Minister Harpal Singh Cheema, Forest Minister Lal Chand Kataruchak, and AAP leader Baltej Pannu alleged that the Congress party has an "anti-Dalit" mindset and asked Bajwa to apologize within 24 hours, failing which strict legal action will be taken.
Cheema said that Harbhajan Singh is a personality who rose out of poverty, cleared the civil services examination through hard work, and became an excise and taxation officer. He resigned from his job to join the Aam Aadmi Party, the finance minister added.
"The Aam Aadmi Party gave him respect and made him a minister. But today, Partap Singh Bajwa used extremely derogatory words against him, which is an insult to the entire Dalit community," Cheema claimed.
He alleged that all Dalit ministers are on the Congress party's target. Using such language against Dalits is extremely unfortunate, he said.
"This is a big insult to the Dalit community of Punjab. It is a matter that discourages children who move ahead in their lives through hard work in Punjab," he added.
The finance minister further alleged that many Congress leaders are "repeatedly targeting Dalits and Scheduled Caste people of Punjab and insulting them in public rallies".
Forest Minister Kataruchakk said that this is not a new remark by Bajwa. "From time to time, he targets leaders who rise from among workers and Dalits. Earlier, too, he made many comments against Dalit leaders,” he claimed.
AAP leader Pannu said that Bajwa's remark points to how much "hatred" Punjab Congress leaders carry in their minds about the Dalit community. "They are calling Harbhajan Singh a 'band player',” he said.
Defending Bajwa, Congress leader Aruna Chaudhry said that the AAP was attempting to create controversy out of a non-issue.
She said the people of Punjab, including the Dalit community, are politically aware and capable of recognizing genuine casteist remarks without needing AAP to act as “self-appointed defenders”.
"AAP is rattled because Leader of Opposition Bajwa is exposing their failures and corruption both inside the Assembly and among the public. To divert attention, they are resorting to false narratives and baseless allegations," she said in a statement.
Chairman of the Punjab Congress Schedule Caste Cell, Kuldeep Vaid, said the AAP has crossed all limits of political decency by falsely accusing Bajwa of making a casteist slur against a cabinet minister.
There was no mention of any individual's caste in Bajwa's remarks, and that AAP was deliberately misleading the public, he alleged.
"AAP leaders seem incapable of understanding the difference between a political pun and a casteist slur. Their attempt to provoke sentiments and exploit the Dalit community for political gain is highly condemnable," Vaid said.
Several senior Congress leaders, including MLAs Vikram Chaudhry and Balwinder Singh Dhaliwal, along with Ex MLAs Pawan Kumar Adia, Santokh Singh Bhalaipur and Joginder Pal Bhoa, also came out in support of Bajwa.
They collectively condemned AAP's attempt to malign his image and mislead the public.
