Sukhbir Badal Skips Behbal Kalan SIT Summon; AAP and SAD Trade Charges

Shiromani Akali Dal president Sukhbir Singh Badal did not appear before the Special Investigation Team (SIT) examining the 2015 Behbal Kalan police firing case, citing medical reasons, and sought a fresh date after September 30. His absence has reignited a political confrontation between Punjab's ruling Aam Aadmi Party and the Akali Dal.

The SIT is investigating the firing at Behbal Kalan village in Faridkot district on October 14, 2015, in which two protesters were killed. They were part of a dharna against the desecration of the Guru Granth Sahib at nearby Bargari village two days earlier. The firing occurred while the SAD-BJP coalition was in power, with Parkash Singh Badal as Chief Minister and Sukhbir Badal as Deputy Chief Minister holding the Home Affairs portfolio that controls the police. The incident, along with police action against protesters at Kotkapura the same day, has been examined by successive SITs, the latest constituted by the AAP government.

The confrontation sharpened because Sukhbir Badal had said a day earlier that he was not afraid of facing the SIT, yet did not appear on the scheduled date. The AAP seized on his absence to question his willingness to cooperate and alleged a "behind-the-scenes alliance" between the BJP and the Badals.

In a post on X, the AAP alleged that the BJP would help Sukhbir Badal secure a clean chit in exchange for the Akali leadership backing the three controversial farm laws, which triggered a prolonged farmers' agitation and resulted in the deaths of hundreds of farmers in 2020-21. Those laws were also the reason the SAD cited for exiting the BJP-led NDA at the time.

AAP leader Anurag Dhanda attacked the SAD chief, saying the then SAD-BJP government was responsible for firing on the protesting sangat and that the "legal account" of Sukhbir Badal's alleged actions was still pending. He added that "jail is not far".

The Akali Dal rejected the political narrative around Badal's absence and questioned the timing of the summons. SAD chief spokesperson Arshdeep Singh Kler said Sukhbir Badal had already appeared before the Behbal Kalan SIT three times and accused the government of deliberately creating a narrative that he was not cooperating. He said the party had submitted a written request asking the SIT to provide a questionnaire so that the people of Punjab could know what the investigating team wanted to question Sukhbir Badal about.

Kler linked the timing of the summons to several controversies confronting the AAP government. He cited allegations of corruption linked to the Chief Minister's Office, allegations concerning the Chief Minister's wife and a rape case, and the continuing controversy over Punjab's drug crisis. He also referred to the recent death of Gulzar Singh in Sangrur after he had raised questions over the drug menace, as well as allegations of police torture involving Mohanjeet Singh after he questioned the prevailing drug situation. According to Kler, these controversies had put the government under serious political pressure, and the latest summons to Sukhbir Badal was being used to divert public attention.