Says, Haryana CM sporting turban has political overtones
Warns against injecting communal venom into Punjab politics
Punjab Newsline, Chandigarh-
Punjab Congress president Amarinder Singh Raja Warring today said that Punjabis have never accepted communalism nor do they get carried away by theatrics.
In an informal interaction with reporters, when asked to react about Haryana Chief Minister Nayab Singh Saini sporting a turban in the assembly, Warring said, he respects his (Saini’s) freedom and choice to follow any faith and sport turban.
However, he added, the timing of Saini tying the turban is important. He pointed out, Saini has been made a poster boy by the BJP for Punjab ahead of the 2027 assembly elections and he is often seen in Punjab with a turban on his head. “Rather he is seen more in Punjab than in Haryana”, he remarked, while adding that Saini will need to answer several questions that people of Punjab have in their mind as there is the contentious issue of waters pending between two states. “What shall be his stand on that?” he asked, while adding, “it is a clear case of conflict of interest”.
As far as the religious symbolism that Saini is trying to resort to, Warring said, “if he believes that by sporting a turban he would appeal to a particular section of the Punjabis, he is badly mistaken”. Warring asserted that Punjabis have never ever voted along communal lines and they never will.
He warned the BJP against trying to inject the Punjab polity with its communal venom. “Punjabis can neither be lured by your communal politics nor the theatrics”, he told the BJP, while adding, this only shows how far removed the BJP and its leaders are from the ground reality in Punjab.