Congress has distanced itself from the views expressed by its MP Charanjit Singh Channi "on Amritpal Singh" and called it a view of his own that does not reflect in any way the position of the party. The reaction of Congress comes after Channi said the detention of an elected MP under the NSA was part of an "undeclared emergency" by the Centre. The statement by the former Punjab Chief Minister drew a sharp response from the BJP.

"The views expressed by Charanjit Singh Channi, MP on Amritpal Singh are his own, and do not reflect in any way the position of the Indian National Congress," Congress general secretary in-charge communications Jairam Ramesh said in a post on X.

The Row Explained

In a debate in Lok Sabha on Thursday, the former Punjab chief minister referred to the recently concluded Lok Sabha elections and said that it is an emergency that a Member of Parliament elected by 20 lakh people in Punjab has been detained under the NSA (National Security Act). "He is unable to speak about his constituency here (in Parliament). This is also an emergency," Channi said.

When the former Punjab CM did not name anyone, the BJP leaders said that he was speaking about Amritpal Singh. Singh won the Khadoor Sahib constituency by a margin of around 2 lakh votes in this year's Lok Sabha polls.

He made a scathing attack at the BJP-led NDA government and alleged that there is an undeclared emergency in the nation while stating that Sidhu Moose Wala, one of the famous singers of the nation, was killed and justice has not been delivered to his family.

The Lok Sabha was also adjourned for 30 minutes amid a verbal spat between the former Punjab chief minister and the Union Minister of State for Railways and Food Processing Industries, Ravneet Singh Bittu, over certain personal remarks till 2 p.m..

BJP Slams Ex-Punjab MP Over Remark In LS

Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) MP Shehzad Poonawalla said the Congress must answer whether the party was in support of the idea of Khalistan that led to the assassination of the then prime minister Indira Gandhi in 1984. Slamming Channi for his remarks of an "undeclared emergency,"  Union Minister Pralhad Joshi, asked him whether he know what an emergency actually is and slammed him for advocating for Amritpal Singh.

Union Minister Ravneet Singh Bittu accused the former Punjab CM of behaving like a traitor.

Union Minister Pralhad Joshi said, "This issue is in court. Serious allegations are against him (Amritpal Singh). It's not right to talk about it in the Parliament. It's before the people, what Congress has done. He (Charanjit Singh Channi) was not there during the Emergency, so he didn't know what was the condition then. Today, they keep commenting over the PM, was it possible to make such comments over Indira Gandhi, during the Emergency?"

BJP leader RP Singh asked Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge if he wanted to support the members who wanted to divide the nation.

RP Singh said, "This is the same Congress that nurtured Bhindranwale and divided Punjab to win the elections. Today, they are supporting Amritpal Singh. If a person has murdered someone, shouldn't he be jailed? This is only for the vote bank, as elections are approaching in Punjab. Rahul Gandhi and Amritpal Singh have said India is a "union of states", which means they both have the same thinking. Kharge Ji needs to answer if his party is standing with the members who want to divide the nation."

(With input from agencies)