Chandigarh, November 20 – The Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) today said the Congress government had committed breach of privilege against its own legislators by tapping their phones and asked Vidhan Sabha Speaker Rana K P Singh to initiate action against officials responsible for this even as it demanded a separate criminal case be registered to nail down the culprits.
In a statement here, SAD Spokesman and former minister Dr Daljit Singh Cheema said it was shocking that Congress legislators had accused their own government of tapping their phones during a meeting of the district grievances redressal committee at Patiala yesterday. He said Congress legislator Madan Lal Jalalpur had even asked cabinet minister Sadhu Singh Dharamsot, who was presiding over the meeting, whether the tapping was being done at the behest of the State government but the minister had refused to clarify the same.
Dr Cheema said “the SAD takes serious note of the issue and urges the Vidhan Sabha Speaker to take notice of the development and protect the privacy of legislators which had been blatantly violated”. He said the Speaker should call the legislators and record their statement before proceeding in the matter. He said a separate probe should also be initiated in the case as Congress legislator Rajinder Singh had accused police officials of tapping his phone during the official meeting. “A criminal case should be filed against police officials responsible for this” he added.
The former minister also asked the Congress government to clarify whether the legislators whose phones were being tapped were being investigated for indulging in any criminal activity. He said the government should clarify if due permission had been given for tapping their phones and also tell why the legislators had been put under phone surveillance.
Dr Cheema said the SAD stood for guarding the privileges of all elected members. He said no underhand means should be used to spy against any legislator. “The privileges enjoyed by elected representatives cannot be compromised in any manner whatsoever. However in case there are any serious charges against the legislators they should be made public and action should be initiated against them as per law”, he added
