Bibi must step down

It is unfortunate that Shiromani Akali Dal SAD chief and Punjab chief minister Parkash Singh Badal continues to rule out any move to ask...

It is unfortunate that Shiromani Akali Dal SAD chief and Punjab chief minister Parkash Singh Badal continues to rule out any move to ask for the resignation of Bibi Jagir Kaur from the post of SGPC chief;the Bibi retains her place in the reconstituted party set-up announcedrecently. It may be recalled that Bibi Jagir Kaur has been named as theprime accused in the FIR which followed a preliminary inquiry by the CBIinto the mysterious circumstances surrounding the death of her daughterHarpreet on the night of April 20-21. She is charged with a criminal role inculpable homicide not amounting to murder, conspiracy, causing abortionwithout consent, destroying evidence and wrongful confinement.

Others in the CBI dragnet include two of the Bibi8217;s close aides her closefamily friends Paramjit and Dalwinder Kaur at whose house Harpreet wasallegedly confined during her last days, and Nishan Singh, the PersonalSecurity Officer PSO of the SGPC chief, who surrendered last week and whohad allegedly accompanied Harpreet during her last days. Given the seriousnature of the charges against her and the fact that successiveinvestigations have fuelled suspicions of her involvement in the sordidcase, surely propriety demands that the Bibi steps down or, failing that, isasked to step down, so that the investigations are completed in a free andfair manner.

Ever since the scandal hit the media headlines, questions have been raisedabout the high profile Bibi8217;s conduct in the entire affair. The Bibiexplained Harpreet8217;s death as resulting from food poisoning but subsequentinvestigations have hinted at an elaborate cover-up exercise. Fingers havebeen pointed at the hurried cremation and the decidedly untraditionaldisposal of the ashes within hours of the death, and the manner in whichBibi has been avoiding public appearances and skipping officialappointments. Images have been unearthed of a love story gone horribly wrong the childhood romance and the secret marriage in defiance of parentaldisapproval followed by the forced abortion and illegal confinement, endingin the finality of Harpreet8217;s tragic, mysterious death. The scandal and thecontroversy have cast a dark shadow not only on the conduct of one of themost powerful leaders in Punjab but have also threatened to draw the state8217;shighest religio-political institutions into the unsavoury mess. ChiefMinister Badal8217;s studied silence and his subsequent attempts to shrug offthe demands for his protege8217;s removal, the shrill redrawing of battlelinesbetween her supporters and detractors within the SAD and the shows ofstrength on both sides in the hallowed Akal Takht complex must be seen asworrying portents.

The SGPC elections are due on November 30 when the SAD will have to decideupon its candidate for the SGPC chief. It is to be hoped that until BibiJagir Kaur is cleared of the grave charges against her, her candidature willnot be renewed. In fact, the first woman SGPC chief owes it to her office tostep down and opt out of the next contest of her own accord. It may stillnot be too late for her to do the honourable thing.