Sukhbir Badal to attend new Parliament inauguration ceremony

Chandigarh, May 24

Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) President Sukhbir Badal will attend the ceremony being held to inaugurate the new Parliament building by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on May 28.

Disclosing this here, senior SAD leader Daljit Singh Cheema on Wednesday said "the inauguration of the new parliament building is a moment of pride for us and this occasion should not be politicised".

Cheema also took on both the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) and the Congress which have decided to boycott the inauguration ceremony. He said AAP was talking about the issue being one of respect for the President.

"The respect Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann has for the first citizen can be gauged from the fact that he did not even receive her when she visited the state. We have also seen how much the Chief Minister respects the President's nominee -- the Governor of Punjab on many occasions."

Similarly, Cheema said "people were also aware about the respect the Congress had for the Constitution when it enforced the draconian Emergency and trampled civil rights".

"The respect the Congress party showed to President Zail Singh is also a matter of record," he added.