Congress leader and legislator Sukhpal Singh Khaira and Akali leader Bikram Singh Majithia do not see eye to eye with each other. They are fierce rivals and each other’s critics.
However, when the Aam Aadmi Party government in Punjab decided to withdraw Majithia’s security, Khaira was among the first to strongly oppose and condemn the decision. Majithia had opposed Khaira’s arrest in an NDPS related case in 2023 despite their long history of political rivalries.
Not only did Khaira oppose it, even the Punjab BJP president Sunil Jakhar and the BJP national general secretary Tarun Chugh also criticised the government’s decision. The two parties rallying behind the Akali leader is a rare development at this stage.
Obviously this unanimous reaction from the opposition parties is just momentary as there is no chance of it translating into political unity, yet one thing is certain that all the three parties are fiercely opposed to the ruling party.
The government eventually caved in to the opposition pressure and restored Majithia’s security. The Punjab Police, in an apparent bid at face saving, claimed that Majithia’s security had not been completely withdrawn, but only “scaled down” after reviewing his threat perception.
Bikram Majithia and Sukhpal Singh Khaira are the only two leaders in Punjab who are fiercely opposing and attacking the AAP government including the Chief Minister Mann. Most other leaders, particularly from the Congress, the principal opposition party, remain guarded in their criticism against the government.
Withdrawing Majithia’s security was also attributed to his daily criticism of the Chief Minister Mann, who he has been targeting every day with a lot of sarcasm. IN an apparent bid to taunt Mann, Majithia has started wearing dark shades, similar to Mann wore for sometime due to an eye infection. Mjithia would frequently taunt Mann about him wearing the goggles and not taking them off.
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After the Punjab government changed the Special Investigation Team (SIT) to probe the NDPS case against Majithia and summoned him frequently, he challenged the Chief Minister to register a fresh case against him. At the same time he warned him that once the Akalis come to power, he will have to pay for it.
This was believed to be the main provocation for the government withdrawing Majithia’s security, which it later claimed had only been scaled down and not completely withdrawn.
Whatever the reason for withdrawing or scaling down Majithia’s security, it has certainly done one thing; that is uniting the opposition and that too at a crucial time when the Ludhiana West assembly by-election is due. Not that the three opposition parties will align together, as there is no chance, they can still have some “unwritten understanding” against the common enemy, the Aam Aadmi Party.
Also Read: Majithia's security cut; Badal alleges conspiracy
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