Chandigarh, November 26
Punjab BJP State President Sunil Jakhar today strongly condemned the remarks made by AAP Minister Aman Arora regarding Prime Minister Narendra Modi during a press conference on the 350th martyrdom day of Sri Guru Tegh Bahadur. Calling the comments baseless, he said that not only Minister Aman Arora but the entire Aam Aadmi Party should publicly apologize for this false statement.
Sunil Jakhar said Aman Arora’s claim that despite being invited, the Prime Minister did not attend the event is completely incorrect. He said that it does not mean the Prime Minister lacks respect for the Guru Sahib. In fact, Modi paid homage to Sri Guru Tegh Bahadur’s unparalleled martyrdom during the major event held in Kurukshetra and the Government of India also issued a commemorative coin dedicated to this sacred occasion.
Jakhar added that a national-level event was also organized at the Red Fort, where people were informed about the Guru’s extraordinary sacrifice to protect religious freedom and humanity. He said several programmes were organized by the Government of India not only across the country but also internationally. Therefore, Aman Arora’s remarks about the Prime Minister are unfounded, baseless and made solely for political gain. He demanded that Aman Arora apologize to the Prime Minister.
Jakhar further said that the BJP’s state unit also organized a Kirtan Darbar at Sri Anandpur Sahib dedicated to the 350th martyrdom anniversary of Sri Guru Tegh Bahadur Sahib and the party leadership collectively bowed and offered prayers at Takht Sri Kesgarh Sahib.
Jakhar added that SGPC had also invited AAP leaders to their event, but not a single minister or leader from the Aam Aadmi Party attended. He questioned, “If you truly have reverence for the Guru Sahiban, then why did you not attend this important SGPC event?”
Jakhar also said that AAP’s double standards were exposed earlier as well on August 26, when Punjab was suffering from floods, AAP Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann was in Tamil Nadu to observe their breakfast scheme. He said the same leaders later extended an invitation for this event to the Tamil Nadu Chief Minister too, yet he also did not attend. “What will the Chief Minister and Aman Arora say about this?” Jakhar questioned. The state president said that all the Chief Ministers of other states knew that such events had political motives and that AAP was using religion for its political interests. That is why none of them considered it appropriate to attend, as no responsible leader wishes to indulge in politics in the name of religion.
Jakhar added that AAP spent crores of rupees on the special Assembly session and on banners featuring their leaders’ photographs purely for political promotion. He said this money could have been far better utilized for the development of Sri Anandpur Sahib, which would have greatly benefited the state and the Sikh community.
Jakhar said that using religious matters for political gain is utterly wrong, and turning the martyrdom of Sri Guru Tegh Bahadur into a political debate reflects the narrow-mindedness and wrong intentions of AAP leaders. He said the BJP and the Central Government have always been committed to honouring the inspirational legacy of Guru Sahib’s supreme sacrifice.
