TheSpecial Investigation Team (SIT) set up to probe the 2015 Kotkapura policefiring incident has questioned former five-time Chief Minister and ShiromaniAkali Dal (SAD) patron Parkash Singh Badal at his residence in Chandigarh forthree hours.
TheSIT team, led by ADGP L.K. Yadav, quizzed the former Chief Minister. He wasquestioned regarding who gave the orders to open fire, whether the cops firedin self-defence and if standard operating procedure was followed.
Badalwas the chief minister of Punjab when the police had opened fire on protestersin Kotkapura on October 14, 2015, killing two and injuring others after allegeddesecration of the Guru Granth Sahib in Bargari village in Faridkot districttook place.
Meanwhile,as per sources, the SIT team during questioning of Badal took along a retireddirector, prosecution, Punjab, Vijay Singla, posing as a DSP, and the SADleaders have criticize the move saying the probe is being politicized by theruling party.
SADPresident Sukhbir Badal said that the guidelines of High Court were violated asSIT for the questioning brought along a retired official under a fake identity.
Earlier,the SIT had rescheduled his questioning after Badal expressed inability toappear before the panel on June 16, citing ill-health and his advance age.
Afterthe high court order on April 9, Chief Minister Amarinder Singh has constituteda new SIT.
Inhis two-page response to the summon from the SIT investigating the handling ofthe Kotkapura incidents by the previous government, Badal last week said,"the entire process of investigation already stands brazenly compromisedthrough blatant and unapologetic political interference and it reeks toostrongly of political vendetta to inspire any confidence about a fair processof law being followed."
Inspite of this, Badal had said, he will "cooperate fully" with theinvestigative process.
Theformer chief minster had also pointed out that the very need for the presentSIT has "arisen out of the brazen politicisation of the case by theprevious SIT".
Inan interesting development in the case, a former Indian Police Service (IPS)officer Kunwar Vijay Pratap, who was handling the probe into police firingafter the desecration of Guru Granth Sahib, on Monday joined Aam Aadmi Party(AAP) in presence of Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal.
Theinduction ceremony was held in the holy city of Amritsar, some 300 km from thestate capital, where Kejriwal came on a day-long visit.
Afterjoining the politics, Kunwar Vijay Pratap blamed the accused of the sacrilegecase for dictating the state government.