Punjab Advocate General hits back at Navjot Singh Sidhu, accuses him of ‘spreading misinformation’

Hours after Navjot Singh Sidhu visited a gurdwara in Faridkot and prayed that those involved in the desecration of the Guru Granth Sahib in 2015 be given exemplary punishment that will be "a deterrent for generations to come", Punjab Advocate General APS Deol has issued a statement hitting back at the Punjab Congress chief.

Punjab Advocate General APS Deol in his statement said, "Navjot Singh Sidhu is obstructing the functioning of the government and office of the advocate general. His repeated utterances seek to derail the earnest efforts of the state government to ensure justice in the ‘drugs matter’ and the ‘sacrileges cases’. Sidhu is spreading misinformation to gain political advantage over his political colleagues."

Sidhu offered prayers at the Burj Jawahar Singh Wala gurdwara in Faridkot from where a copy of the Guru Granth Sahib was stolen in 2015.

"Ardas at Gurudwaara saheb Burj Jawahar Singh wala, Bargari .... Praying for exemplary punishment for those involved in the sacrilege of Guru Granth saheb ji ... should be a deterrent for generations to come!" Sidhu said in a tweet.

For the unversed, Sidhu has been demanding that APS Deol resign from his post as he represented two accused cops in the 2015 sacrilege case. In fact, on Friday in a press conference, Sidhu had said that he would take back his resignation, with one proviso; he would take charge when a new Advocate General is appointed.

"I have taken back my resignation (as Punjab Congress chief) and I categorically state that the day new Advocate General will be appointed and a new panel will come, I will take charge of my office. It was not any personal ego,” Sidhu had said.

Sidhu had caused a massive uproar when he had on 28 September resigned as the chief of the Punjab Pradesh Congress Committee. In a letter to Congress president Sonia Gandhi, Sidhu, had, however, said he would continue to serve the party.

Even at that time, it was reported that the appointments of APS Deol and Director General of Police Iqbal Preet Singh Sahota — seen as Chief Minister Charanjit Singh Channi’s choices — had irked Sidhu.

With inputs from agencies