LUCKNOW: The Agra district president of the newly-formed Rashtriya Bajrang Dal of Praveen Togadia has announced a bounty of Rs 5 lakh on cricketer-turned-politician, Congress leader and Punjab Cabinet minister Navjot Singh Sidhu's head.
In a video message which went viral on social media, Rashtriya Bajrang Dal's Agra District chief Sanjay Jaat is shown flashing a cheque for Rs 5 lakh and announcing that he would give it to anyone who beheads Sidhu for hugging Pakistan Army chief Qamar Javed Bajwa during the swearing-in ceremony of Imran Khan as Pakistan's prime minister on Saturday.
The former cricketer is under fire from all corners, including Punjab Chief Minister Amarinder Singh, for visiting Pakistan and hugging that country's Army chief.
"His act is unpardonable. He should be booked under treason charges. Sidhu seems to have forgotten teachings of Sikh Guru Gobind Singh. How can he hug the Army Chief of an enemy nation who is responsible for killing our soldiers?" asked the Bajrang Dal leader.
The Bajrang Dal leader went on to say that the entire nation was seething with anger as the former cricketer had hurt the sentiments of the families of those whose sons had laid down their lives while defending India's borders. "People will never forgive Sidhu for his action," said the leader.
Announcing a ban on Sidhu's entry into Agra, he said that people would garland him with shoes if he ever tried to visit Agra. The Rashtriya Bajrang Dal has demanded termination of Sidhu's membership of the Punjab Legislature and filing of treason charges against him.
Meanwhile, after being booked on charges of sedition in a court if Muzaffarpur, Bihar, the Punjab cabinet minister was slapped with two more similar cases, in Kanpur and Varanasi, on Tuesday.
In Kanpur, advocate Priyanshu Saxena approached the court of City Magistrate Court No. 7 with a complaint against the former cricketer for hugging the Pakistan Army chief. He has appealed to the court to summon Sidhu and try him on sedition charges. The court admitted the plea and posted the matter for hearing on August 24.
In Varanasi, a complaint was filed against the Congress leader at ACJM Court No. 9. He has been slapped with a case under Sections 121A, 124A and 511 of Indian Penal Code. The matter has been posted for hearing on August 23.
Earlier, sedition charges were filed in a court in Muzzafarpur in Bihar against Sidhu. The complaint was filed by advocate Sudhir Kumar Ojha in the court of Chief Judicial Magistrate Hari Prasad. The court fixed August 24, 2018, as the date for hearing the matter.