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STATES:
PUNJAB
Tightening
Noose
With the
CBI charging her with murder, the SGPC chief is in serious trouble-and
so is mentor Badal
By
Ramesh Vinayaka
The
irony could not have been more stark. In November 1998, when Bibi Jagir
Kaur, then a political nobody, was hand-picked by Akali Dal supremo Parkash
Singh Badal to be the first woman president of the 75-year-old Shiromani
Gurdwara Prabandhak Committee (SGPC), her surprise choice was widely touted
as "a celebration of women's empowerment" to coincide with the
tercentenary of the Khalsa Panth.
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| Bibi's
indictment could loosen Badal's hold on the SGPC |
Exactly two
years later, Bibi Kaur is not just facing an ignominious exit from the
apex Sikh religious body, she even faces the prospect of a long stint
in jail. Last week, the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) charged
her with the murder of her daughter Harpreet Kaur. On April 21, 18-year-old
Harpreet had died under mysterious circumstances at a relative's house
in Phagwara. If the tightening legal noose wasn't bad enough, Bibi now
has to live with the tag of a kudi maar (killer of one's daughter). In
the Sikh community, there is seemingly no greater sin.
Bibi has
been on the run since her name figured among six accused for the crime
in an FIR filed last month. And last week, the CBI converted the charge
from Section 304 (culpable homicide not amounting to murder) to Section
302 (murder). The change was brought after the agency unearthed fresh
evidence during interrogation of the other five accused, three of whom
are Bibi's close relatives. The CBI has now charged Bibi as the "chief
conspirator" in causing the death of her daughter, brought about,
they say, by illegal confinement, forcible abortion and poisoning. For
the agency, the pieces began falling into place only after the arrest
of Nishan Singh, Bibi's relative and personal security officer.
For long,
Singh, an assistant sub-inspector with the Punjab Police, had been playing
a hide-and-seek game, reportedly with the collusion of the state police.
The force's role is already under a cloud: it allegedly hushed up evidence
by letting Bibi hurriedly cremate Harpreet's body without the mandatory
post mortem. Both Bibi and Punjab Police had conveniently termed the death
as "natural" and a result of food poisoning. The CBI stepped
in after the Punjab and Haryana High Court ordered a full probe.
According
to the CBI, Singh initially proved a tough nut to crack, but later spilled
the beans on what is widely believed to be an honour killing. Harpreet
had annoyed her powerful mother by marrying a boy of her native place,
Begowal, without her approval.
Bibi has
virtually been in hiding for the past month. She got a reprieve from the
mounting heat on November 15 when the Punjab and Haryana High Court granted
her bail, though it directed her to present herself at the CBI headquarters
for questioning. When the CBI slapped a murder charge against her, Bibi's
supporters began to vanish. Only the hardcore ones remained, coming up
with bizarre explanations for their leader's plight. "After its failure
in the cricket match-fixing scandal, the CBI is trying to score points
by targeting a high-profile politician," says SGPC Secretary Gurbachan
Singh Bachan.
Badal
Miscalculated: The murder charge has sealed Bibi's fate as the SGPC
chief if not brought to an end her wobbly political career. In fact, Badal
had chosen her for the coveted post not because of her acumen or experience
but because he was certain she would be a pliant protegé. Badal's
move, then hailed as master stroke, has boomeranged.
With the
CBI charges coming on the eve of SGPC elections, the moment of truth seems
to have arrived for him too. Rival Akali factions have consistently accused
Badal of "damaging" Sikh institutions. This emotive issue has
now become a rallying point for the Akali factions as seen at a recent
Panthic Convention held in Ludhiana at Akali stalwart G.S.Tohra's initiative.
Portraying Badal as "guilty of denigrating Sikh institutions"
forms the centrepiece of their strategy to undercut the chief minister's
Sikh support base and revive their political fortunes. What may worry
Badal more, though, is that even members of his cabinet are beginning
to agree. "Bibi is guilty of aggrieving Panthic sentiments and the
Akali Dal may have to pay a heavy price," Finance Minister Captain
Kanwaljit Singh told INDIA TODAY.
In Akali
politics, the SGPC, rich with cash and clout in the Sikh community, is
a veritable power house. Though Badal still commands a majority in the
190-member SGPC general house, selecting Bibi's successor is a tricky
issue, given that most front-line contenders are either Akali leaders
in their own right or owe loyalty to Akali stalwarts who spell trouble
for him. With the support of just 40 members, Tohra, of course, is in
no position to put up a challenge. But he is waiting to exploit the internal
dissension within Badal's rank and file. Therefore, the aftermath of Bibi's
fall portends an intensified power struggle within the Akali Dal. And
as if the Bibi episode was not enough, the implication of an Akali MLA
in the murder of a Congress leader last week has further raised political
temperatures in Punjab.
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The
Indian industry has increased its decibel level of whining. Instead, it
should get the government to deliver, says INDIA TODAY Associate Editor
V. Shankar Aiyar in 
