Congress Dissociates Itself From Charanjit Channi's Remark On Amritpal Singh

Lok Sabha member Charanjit Singh Channi accused the central government of imposing an "undeclared emergency" in the country.

Congress MP Charanjit Singh Channi speaks in the Lok Sabha during the Monsoon session of Parliament, in New Delhi, Thursday, July 25, 2024.

Source : PTI

The Congress on Thursday distanced itself from Lok Sabha MP and former Punjab Chief Minister Charanjit Singh Channi's remark allegedly supporting controversial MP Amritpal Singh, stating that his views do not represent the stance of the party.

"The views expressed by Charanjit Singh Channi, MP on Amritpal Singh are his own, and do not reflect in any way the position of the Indian National Congress," Jairam Ramesh said in a post on X.

The views expressed by Charanjit Singh Channi, MP on Amritpal Singh are his own, and do not reflect in any way the position of the Indian National Congress

— Jairam Ramesh (@Jairam_Ramesh) July 25, 2024

Congress statements came following Channi's remark on Thursday stating that the detention of an elected MP under the NSA signifies an "undeclared emergency" by the Centre, eliciting a strong reaction from the BJP.

"This is also an emergency that a Member of Parliament elected by 20 lakh people in Punjab has been detained under the NSA (National Security Act) ... He is unable to speak about his constituency here (in Parliament). This is also an emergency," Channi said.

Although Channi did not specify any names, the BJP asserted that he was referring to the contentious Sikh preacher Amritpal Singh, who secured a victory in the Lok Sabha elections from the Khadoor Sahib constituency of Punjab with a margin of approximately 2 lakh votes.

BJP Ask Congress To Remove Him From Party

BJP spokesperson Shehzad Poonawalla lashed out at Channi over his remark stating that the Congress must answer whether the party was in support of the idea of Khalistan that led to the assassination of the then prime minister Indira Gandhi in 1984.

"Batting for separatist who wants tukde tukde of India? Rahul ji must answer - the idea of Khalistan that caused the assassination of PM Indira ji is being hailed !! Why does Congress always bat for separatists and terrorists? Yakub, Afzal, 26/11 jihadis, now K terrorists?" he wrote on his social media handle X.

Congress MP and Former Punjab CM Channi bats for radical pro-Khalistan separatist Amritpal Singh.

Is this Jai Sanvidhan? Batting for separatist who wants tukde tukde of India ?

Rahul ji must answer - the idea of Khalistan that caused the assassination of PM Indira ji is being… pic.twitter.com/j1MDq8s8QY

— Shehzad Jai Hind (Modi Ka Parivar) (@Shehzad_Ind) July 25, 2024

Union minister Giriraj Singh said Congress MP Channi's remarks made inside Parliament were "unfortunate". "The Khalistani who assassinated Indira Gandhi has received open support from Channi today, which means the Congress is siding with the Khalistanis. This is an attack on the integrity of India...what can I say, I will say action should be taken," he said, PTI reported.

Meantime, BJP MP Dinesh Sharma called for the Congress to remove Channi from their party. "Today, Channi, who doesn't even have the status of a 'chavanni' (a quarter-rupee coin), is speaking in support of terrorists and glorifying them. He is working at the behest of anti-national elements from Canada," he said, PTI reported.

"The Congress should expel him, and if Congress doesn't take action against him, it means that somewhere Congress is in cahoots with these anti-social and anti-national elements," he also said.

Verbal Clash Between Channi, Ravneet Singh Bittu

Channi accused the central government of imposing an "undeclared emergency" in the country, leading to a heated discussion with the Union Minister of State for Railways and Food Processing Industries, Ravneet Singh Bittu during a Lok Sabha debate, which resulted in a brief adjournment.

The Lok Sabha session was adjourned for 30 minutes due to a verbal clash between Channi and Ravneet Singh Bittu over personal remarks, until 2 pm.

During the Union Budget debate, Channi criticised the BJP government for labelling farmers as Khalistanis and neglecting Punjab in this year's budget. He stated "It's not a budget to save the country, it's just to save their government. They haven't addressed the floods in Punjab, haven't raised wages, and have ignored Punjab in this budget. Jalandhar was declared a smart city, but it still has dirty water and a significant drug problem."

Channi mentioned the assassination of Bittu's grandfather, former Punjab chief minister Beant Singh, sparking a war of words with Bittu, who recently left Congress for the BJP. Bittu countered by making personal remarks against Channi and former Congress president Sonia Gandhi, causing an uproar.

In the heated exchange, Channi said, "Your grandfather became a martyr the day you left Congress." Bittu retorted, "My grandfather sacrificed for the country, not for Congress," and called Channi "the most corrupt person in Punjab."

In his Lok Sabha address, Channi accused the government of creating conditions similar to an emergency, citing the lack of progress in the Sidhu Moosewala case, actions against opposition leaders by central agencies, and alleged mistreatment of farmers, women athletes, and journalists as evidence.