Garhwal Post Bureau
DEHRADUN, 6 Dec: Former Cabinet Minister and Congress leader Harak Singh Rawat found himself at the centre of controversy after allegedly making an objectionable remark about a Sikh lawyer during an ongoing protest by advocates in Dehradun on Friday. The incident triggered widespread anger and led to a strong demonstration onSaturday by the Sikh community of Dehradun.
Following the uproar, Harak Singh visited the Bar Association office on Friday everning, where he attempted to clarify his position and tendered an apology for having hurt sentiments. The advocates present accepted his apology. Harak Singh later stated that the Sikh lawyer he had asked to sit down during his address was personally known to him and that his intention was not to mock or insult anyone.
Despite this clarification, members of the Sikh community expressed outrage by staging a massive protest at Ghanta Ghar in the city on Saturday. The demonstrators also burnt an effigy of Harak Singh Rawat in anger, with the protest being led by BJP Councillor Santokh Nagpal. Nagpal declared that the Sikh community was deeply offended by Harak Singh’s comment and insisted that the apology should have been made publicly rather than within a closed room. He reminded that the Sikh community had recently participated wholeheartedly in Guru Tegh Bahadur’s Martyrdom Day and condemned the indecent language used against a community that has historically stood at the forefront in defending the nation, stressing that no amount of censure would suffice.
Nagpal further asserted that such remarks reflected Harak Singh’s mentality and left the Sikh community with no choice but to take to the streets. He warned that if Harak Singh Rawat failed to issue a public apology, protests would be organised against him across the state.
It is pertinent to note that lawyers in Dehradun have been staging a protest for several days demanding chambers. Harak Singh Rawat had visited the advocates to extend his support to their agitation when he made the controversial remark about the Sikh lawyer, which now snowballed into a major controversy.
