Chandigarh, March 5
The Disciplinary Action Committee (DAC) of the Punjab Pradesh Congress Committee has suspended senior leader Jagmeet Singh Brar from the party membership with immediate effect and referred his case for expulsion from its primary membership for six years to Mrs Sonia Gandhi. Obviously, this development will create a ruckus in the party.

Party insiders say that Mr Nasib Singh Gill, chairman, and Mr Basant Singh, member of the DAC, have written a detailed letter to Mrs Gandhi explaining the reasons for Mr Brar’s suspension. Mr Gill confirmed that he and Mr Basant Singh had written to the party President with regard to Mr Brar, but refused to say anything further.

Sources said the DAC had informed Mrs Gandhi that the “action” against Mr Brar had been taken to pre-empt him from “ causing further damage” to the Congress in Punjab. The DAC, the sources added, had stated in the letter that it had got information that Mr Brar was about to join the Shiromani Akali Dal, and by publicly accusing and abusing the Congress leadership, he wanted to tarnish the image of the Congress in the state. The DAC, the sources said, had asserted that Mr Brar would join the SAD on Hola Mohalla day at Muktsar and that he had been contacting his men, who were now in the Congress, to stand by him.

The DAC stated in the letter that Mr Brar, former MP, knowingly attacked politically the Chief Minister, Capt Amarinder Singh, at a time when the Congress was engaged in a big battle against the SAD in the Ajnala byelection. Mr Brar levelled serious allegations relating to booth capturing and rigging against the Chief Minister and went to the extent of calling him a “Khalistani”. This is said to be the operative part of the letter written to Mrs Gandhi.

The PPCC chief, Mr H.S. Hanspal, had brought Mr Brar’s statements to the notice of the leader in charge of party affairs in Punjab, Mr Pranab Mukherjee, and had urged him to take deterrent action against Mr Brar.

It seemed that no action had been taken against him. And that resulted in the levelling of allegations and counter-allegations among various Congressmen. It vitiated the congenial atmosphere in the party and also created indiscipline.

The sources said that the DAC had informed Mrs Gandhi that Mr Brar had an Akali background and he had allegedly unfurled the “Sikh homeland” flag in Amritsar. There were also allegations that he had quit the party and joined hands with anti-national forces working under the banner of the Panthic Morcha. It had also been alleged that Mr Brar had put the Congress high command in an embarrassing position on many occasions earlier, the sources added. Mrs Gandhi had been informed that the continuation of Mr Brar in the party would not be in the interest of the Congress.