Ravneet Bittu meets Bharat Bhushan Ashu in Patiala jail, but not Navjot Sidhu

Patiala, September 26

Member of Parliament (MP) from Ludhiana Ravneet Singh Bittu on Monday met his party colleague Bharat Bhushan Ashu in the Central Jail here, but did not meet former minister Navjot Singh Sidhu, who is also lodged in the same jail.

Prior appointment condition

I was told Navjot Singh Sidhu meets only with prior appointment. I did wish to meet Sidhu when I came see Bharat Bhushan Ashu. — Ravneet Bittu, Ludhiana MP

Bittu held a meeting with Ashu on Monday afternoon. “I was told Sidhu meets only with prior appointment. I did wish to meet Sidhu when I came to see Ashu,” he said.

“Ashu is in high spirits. He is facing a politically motivated case. The former minister will soon be out as he is innocent,” said Bittu.

Bittu accused the Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) of playing petty politics by pressing for the release of Balwant Singh Rajoana, who was convicted of the assassination of Beant Singh. “SAD leader Bikram Singh Majithia is raising the Rajoana issue only under pressure,” he said.

Accusing Aam Aadmi Party and Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann of indulging in vendetta politics, Bittu said, “All leaders arrested by the Vigilance Bureau will get justice from the court.”

Meanwhile, Sidhu is observing a ‘maun vrat’ during the nine-day Navratri festival, which began on Monday. He has refused to meet anyone without a ‘prior appointment’.

On Sunday evening, his wife Navjot Kaur Sidhu tweeted from Sidhu’s official account, saying, “My husband will observe silence during the Navratri fest and will meet visitors

after October 5.”

The cricketer-turned-politician has been sentenced to one-year rigorous imprisonment by the Supreme Court in a 1988 road rage death case.