Chandigarh, June 22, 2013: Amid criticism, Punjab Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal cut short his London holiday and returned here on Friday to supervise the operation to evacuate Punjabi pilgrims stranded at Hemkunt Sahib, Kedarnath and Badrinath after the recent flash floods in Uttarakhand.

A release said that on his arrival, Mr. Badal summoned officials to know abut the latest situation. Later, he visited the Inter State Bus Terminus in Sector 43 in Chandigarh to receive the evacuees.

In another development, Pradesh Congress Committee chief Partap Singh Bajwa criticised Deputy Chief Minister Sukhbir Singh Badal for making false claims about evacuating 800 pilgrims from Hemkunt Sahib.

He also charged the Chief Minister with shedding crocodile tears for pilgrims returning in buses. He claimed that Mr. Parkash Singh Badal had returned from London only to attend a rally by the recently appointed BJP election campaign committee chief Narendra Modi on July 23.

Mr. Bajwa quoted a statement by Chairman of the Shri Hemkunt Sahib Trust Narinderjit Singh Bindra that not even a single pilgrim was rescued by the team sent by the Akali Dal-BJP government and the chopper hired by it remained parked at the Jolly Grant airport near Dehradun. As the chopper was not worthy to fly in the hilly areas it did not undertake a single sortie, Mr. Bajwa claimed.

State Congress spokesman Sukhpal Singh Khaira demanded an “unconditional” apology from the Chief Minister and his Deputy for the “failure” of the Punjab government to rescue 5,000 Punjabi pilgrims stuck in Uttarakhand. He criticised the Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee for not rising to the occasion to ensure the safety of the “Sangat.”

Chief Minister’s Adviser on National Affairs and the Media Harcharan Bains said the Punjab government had extended full cooperation to Uttarakhand. It had also written to the Army for assistance in evacuating the pilgrims.

Source: The Hindu