Less than a month after he thrashed the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) in the Sangrur Lok Sabha bypoll, hardliner Simranjit Singh Mann is back with his bittersweet remarks that have set the state’s political landscape on fire.
After his Sangrur victory, he inducted terrorist Jarnail Singh Bindranwale as a “leader working for the Sikh community”.
Now, the 77-year-old politician has labeled freedom fighter Bhagat Singh a “terrorist”, triggering a strong backlash in Punjab.
During an interaction with the media in Karnal, when Mann was asked about his earlier statement calling Bhagat Singh a “terrorist”, he said, “Bhagat Singh killed a young, English naval officer, he An Amritdhari Sikh constable, Channan Singh was killed. He had thrown a bomb in the National Assembly at that time. Now you tell me whether Bhagat Singh was a terrorist or not?”
The statement has drawn widespread condemnation, but the sharpest reactions have come from the AAP, which shifted its bastion from a Sangrur IPS-officer to a Khalistan-sympathetic politician. In the last 48 hours, the party has hit out at two of its frontline leaders Gurmeet Singh Meet Hare and Malvinder Kang over their statements to Simranjit Singh Mann.
Hare criticized Mann’s remarks, claiming that Bhagat Singh would be declared a martyr for his great sacrifice for the country’s independence. On Sunday, Kang went a step further, saying the Sangrur MP was trying to hide his grandfather’s “hurtful” act.
Citing some historical reports, Kang said that Mann’s maternal grandfather Aroor Singh, the then sarbarah (in-charge) of the Golden Temple, had awarded “Siropa” to General Reginald Dyer at the Akal Takht after the Jallianwala Bagh massacre in 1919.
Ironically, the Sangrur MP has defended his grandfather. He told the Tribune that his grandfather honored General Dyer to pacify his anger as the British wanted to carry out aerial bombardment of Amritsar. “He did this on the advice of GA Wathen, the then principal of Khalsa College, to save the Golden Temple from bombing,” he told the newspaper.
AAP has rejected these claims. Kang said Mann was justifying his grandfather’s actions with dubious claims. After the ceremony at the Golden Temple, Aroor Singh faced rebellion from the Sikhs of Punjab as he was seen as a pro-British Sikh. Mann should not try to whitewash his family’s suspicious past but should apologize for hurting people’s sentiments. Because Punjabis know the truth and cannot be misled,” Kang said.
Calling Amar Shaheed a terrorist is a shameful act that undermines the supreme sacrifice made for the country’s freedom. This is not surprising.@SukhpalKhairaeither@Partap_Sbajwaare yet shocked or deeply shocked by the abusive abuse. pic.twitter.com/CRJtygesQu
— Malvinder Singh Kang (@kangmalvinder) 15 July 2022
Even historical facts seem to contradict Mann on this. Professor Mohinder Singh in his book ‘The Akali Movement’ has put forth in detail the conversation between Aroor Singh and General Dyer.
“While the country was busy condemning the Jallianwala Bagh massacre and was engulfed in a wave of shock, panic and panic, Aroor Singh invited General Dyer to the Golden Temple and awarded him the ‘Siropa’, declaring him a ‘Sikh’. ” Professor Singh wrote
Observers say that after Mann’s shock victory, there has been an attempt by hardliners like MP to portray Bhagat Singh in a bad light and glorify terrorists like Bhindranwale to consolidate political gains earned from a section of hardline supporters in the Malwa region. has been attempted.
“There is no greater hero than Bhagat Singh. All these efforts will eventually fail,” remarked a politician from Malwa.
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