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Chandigarh, Nov 4 (IANS) Punjab Finance Minister Harpal Singh Cheema on Tuesday criticized state Congress president Amarinder Singh Raja Waring’s derogatory remarks on late senior Congress leader Buta Singh and termed the incident as a “crime born of caste ego” rather than a mere mistake.
He dismissed King Waring’s apology as merely an attempt to “bury the issue” after being confronted by the public. Cheema stressed that Waring should know better given his vast political experience as a former All India Youth Congress president, three-time MLA, Cabinet minister and current Member of Parliament.
Cheema stressed that the targeting of a notable political figure on the basis of his caste by a person with such deep experience was not a mistake but a “crime born of caste ego which has wounded the hearts of countless people and requires legal punishment”. The Finance Minister highlighted the stature of late Buta Singh and said that he was no ordinary person but a highly educated and prominent leader of Raja Warringah’s own Congress party.
Cheema told the media here that Buta Singh worked as a teacher and journalist before rising to fame as the country’s powerful Union Home Minister. He described it as “extremely unfortunate” that such a great personality had to be subjected to caste-based insults by a self-styled caste-conceited leader of his own party.
Cheema cited past casteist statements by leaders like Pratap Singh Bajwa and Sunil Jakhar against another party leader. He called on the Congress to immediately expel Raja Warringah and warned that failure to do so would only reaffirm the party’s long-standing anti-Dalit policies. He affirmed that the land of Punjab, guided by the message of its Gurus and saints, will never allow defamation in the name of caste.
The minister said that the state government is engaged in propagating the message of human equality given by Sri Guru Teg Bahadur during the 350th martyrdom anniversary programmes. Additionally, the government is honoring the history of figures such as Baba Jeevan Singh (Bhai Jaita-ji), who was given the title of ‘Rangreta Guru ka Beta’ (Son of the Guru) by the tenth Guru Sahib, and is actively working to pass on his legacy of respect to the next generation.
Cheema described the behavior of the Congress party as reflecting its “real mentality”, which he found extremely unfortunate when the AAP government is honoring the descendants of these respected personalities.
–IANS
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