SARAN (Amritsar) Oct 22 — Even as Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal, President, SAD has stated that there was no move to remove Bibi Jagir Kaur as SGPC President. The Sarb Hind Shiromani Akali Dal (SHSAD) led by Mr Gurcharan Singh Tohra, has threatened to move court on this issue.

Mr Badal, who had come here to attend the death anniversary of Makhan Singh, father of Mr Manjinder Singh Kang, Chairman, Forest Corporation, here has come to the rescue of the SGPC chief, saying that an FIR lodged against anybody was hardly any basis for initiating action.

“A number of FIRs are registered every day, however, until somebody is declared guilty by a court of law, he or she is innocent”, he said.

Replying to another question, Mr Badal said there was no move to appoint any acting president of the SGPC to expedite the functioning of the Shiromani committee. He evaded a question when his attention was drawn to the fact that the functioning of the SGPC had come to a standstill after the registration of a CBI case against Bibi Jagir Kaur.

Meanwhile, Mr Harbans Singh Manjpur, member of the SGPC executive of the SHSAD has warned that if Mr Badal failed to sack Bibi Jagir Kaur, his party would move the Sikh Gurdwara Judicial Commission.

Earlier, addressing the Sikh sangat, Mr Badal alleged that the SHSAD had become a “permanent agent” of the Congress.

Meanwhile, Mr Badal said the state government would remodel the Upper Bari Doab canal at the cost of Rs 180 crore on a priority basis.

TALWANDI SABO: Mr Gurbachan Singh Bachan, Secretary, SGPC, on Sunday said that Bibi Jagir Kaur should not resign from her post.

When asked why the ashes of Harpreet Kaur, Bibi Jagir Kaur’s daughter, were immersed immediately after her cremation, he said the cremation and immersion of ashes had been done according to the Sikh traditions.

Varinder Singh adds from Jalandhar: The CBI has now started looking out for the constable wife of Nishan Singh.

Ms Varinder Kaur, wife of Nishan Singh, is a constable with the Jalandhar police and has also been posted with the SGPC chief on security duty since Bibi Jagir Kaur took over as the president of the SGPC. She had been allotted an accommodation in the local Police Lines, which has been locked for the past week. She has reportedly not been accessible to PAP officials who have visited the house a number of times to serve a notice on Nishan Singh.