|
Dal Khalsa seeks discussion on
federal agency bill
WSN Network
Amritsar: After SAD (Badal), it is the Dal Khalsa that had sought a
thorough discussion on the proposed bill for creating a federal
agency to combat terror.
In a statement
party secretary for political affairs Kanwarpal Singh said the
doubts expressed by Shiromani Akali Dal regarding the functioning of
the proposed body were valid and the experience of
Punjab, Kashmir
and other conflict-torn states has been bitter in the past.
Hailing the
Parliament for condemning terrorism in one voice the party spokesman
said the Parliamentarians should have also condemned the violence
against Christians in Orissa and Karnataka by Hindutva elements in
the same manner. "Why be selective on terrorism, he quipped?
He said that the
creation of a new federal agency by surpassing the rights of the
state would create further discord between the states and the
centre. He pointed out that the Sikh opposition against this new
bill stems out of their bitter experience from the recent past as
the people of the state has borne the brunt of black laws like TADA,
POTA that were misused to benefit the interests of the ruling class.
"We are not against law to counter terror but we have strong
reservations against the misuse of it in the hands of the ruling
elite".
He said law and
order being a state subject, the union government can't infringe
upon the rights of the states. By taking 'undue' advantage of the
surcharged atmosphere the UPA government with the backing of BJP was
trying to wrest all powers in its hands leaving the states on the
whims and fancies of handful of policy makers.
Commenting on
the proposed Bill to set up National Investigation Agency he said
since the country is not federal in true sense the Centre was
already strong with weak states and this remained the bone of
contention between the certain states including
Punjab and the
Central government. Even the Anandpur sahib resolution of the SAD
sought redefining of the centre-state relations seeking more powers
to the states.
In a country
where politicians were neither honest nor talented this proposed
agency like the CBI too would end up as another tool in the hands of
ruling elite to harass, frame and suppress the dissenting voices. He
said before moving ahead the Union government should first allay the
fears of the states especially those who were being ruled by
minority communities as they have been at the receiving end since
decades.
17 December
2008
|
Read Also