Singer Sidhu Moose Wala was shot dead on Sunday
Security cover for over 420 VVIPs will be restored from June 7, the Punjab government said today, five days after singer Sidhu Moose Wala - whose security cover was curtailed - was shot dead.
The Aam Aadmi Party, or AAP, government told this to the Punjab and Haryana High Court, which heard a petition by former minister OP Soni, who is among the 424 whose security cover was curtailed.
The Punjab government led by Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann has been slammed with criticism over curtailing security for VVIPs since Sidhu Moose Wala was shot dead.
To a question by the high court on why security cover was curtailed, the Punjab government said it needed the security personnel for Operation Bluestar's anniversary on June 6, referring to the military offensive in June 1984 to eliminate terrorists who had dug in at the Golden Temple.
After the court proceedings today, the BJP quickly pointed out that the AAP, whose national head Arvind Kejriwal often touts as a prominent anti-corruption party, has taken a U-turn since it had cited ending VIP culture as the reason behind curtailing security for hundreds of people in the border state.
"Kejriwal-Mann duo bite the dust, again. They refuted back in high court on their claim of reducing VIP culture in Punjab by saying that it was a temporary withdrawal. AAP Punjab's cheap stunt cost Punjabis a precious life. Punjab's youth would never forgive them for their hypocrisy," BJP leader Manjinder Singh Sirsa tweeted.
Amid the heavy attack from the BJP, the Punjab Chief Minister came to Delhi today and met with Mr Kejriwal. Mr Mann has announced a judicial commission headed by a high court judge to investigate the murder of Sidhu Moose Wala.
The Punjab Police have said a gang rivalry was behind the murder of the singer. Canada-based gangster in an unverified Facebook post claimed responsibility for the killing.
However, Sidhu Moose Wala's father in a letter to Mr Mann criticised his government for linking his son's murder to a gang war and demanded an apology from the Punjab Police chief.