Punjab resents non-inclusion of state's tableau in national R-Day parade
Darpan News Desk IANS, 25 Jan, 2023 11:45 AM
Chandigarh, Jan 25 (IANS) Slamming the Centre for not including the tableau of the state in the Republic Day parade, Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann on Wednesday said this "anti-Punjab stance" of the BJP-led Union government is "unwarranted" and "undesirable".
In a statement here, he said that every year Republic Day parade celebrations include a spectacular ceremonious parade, which is a tribute to India, its unity in diversity and its rich cultural heritage through various states' tableaus.
Punjab has also been regularly featuring in the tableau parade showcasing the critical importance of this border state with its rich history, colourful and vibrant culture and pivotal point for defining events which shaped the history of the great nation, he said.
The Chief Minister said though the selection committee even appreciated the ideas but it is disheartening that the people of this great country along with the whole world will be bereft from the rich cultural and historical tribute, which Punjab will have showcased.
He recalled that Punjabis had made enormous sacrifices to free the motherland from its yoke of British imperialism. Mann said despite of being merely two per cent of the country's population, 80 per cent of the martyrs either executed or exiled during the freedom movement were Punjabis.
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Punjab Police's former Head Constable Gagandeep Singh, who planted the bomb at the court complex on December 23, 2021, was killed as it suddenly went off. Six others were injured. The case was initially registered at a Ludhiana police station, but later, it was taken over by the NIA.
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The incident occurred on November 26 last year when the drunk passenger allegedly urinated on a co-passenger in her 70s in the business class of an Air India flight from New York to Delhi. Aviation regulator DGCA on January 5 had said that the conduct of Air India was unprofessional and has led to a systemic failure.
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Last year in June, the Supreme Court dismissed a plea filed by Zakia Jafri, widow of former Congress MP Ehsan Jafri, challenging a clean chit given by the Special Investigation Team to then Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi and several others in the 2002 Gujarat riots.
