Sukhbir Singh Badal resigns as Shiromani Akali Dal president
Chandigarh, Nov 16: Sukhbir Singh Badal, who had been declared 'tankhaiya' (guilty of religious misconduct) by the Akal Takht, tendered his resignation as the Shiromani Akali Dal president, said senior party leader Daljit Singh Cheema on Saturday.
His resignation paves the way for the election of the new party chief.
Badal submitted his resignation to the party’s working committee, said Cheema.
“The SAD President Sukhbir Singh Badal submitted his resignation to the working Committee of the party today to pave the way for the election of new President. He thanked all the party leaders & workers for expressing confidence in his leadership and extending wholehearted support & cooperation throughout the tenure,” said Cheema in a post on X.
Badal’s resignation came days after he urged the Akal Takht Jathedar to pronounce his punishment for religious misconduct charges, saying more than two months have passed since he was declared 'tankhaiya' (guilty of religious misconduct).
On August 30, Akal Takht Jathedar Giani Raghbir Singh declared Badal 'tankhaiya' for "mistakes" committed by the SAD and its government from 2007 to 2017.
The jathedar is yet to pronounce 'tankhah' (religious punishment) for Badal.
After Badal failed to get any temporary relief from the Akal Takht, the SAD announced on October 24 that it would not contest the bypolls.
On July 1, rebel SAD leaders, including former MP Prem Singh Chandumajra and ex-Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee (SGPC) chief Bibi Jagir Kaur, appeared before the Akal Takht and sought forgiveness for the "mistakes" committed by the party's government between 2007 and 2017.
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Odisha govt halts salaries of 5 teachers after school fire injures 4 students
Bhubaneswar (PTI): The Odisha government on Tuesday halted the salaries of five teachers and issued show-cause notices to other staff of a state-run high school in Rayagada district, a day after four students sustained severe burn injuries in a fire incident on the premises of the institute.
School and Mass Education Minister Nityananda Gond told PTI that he has directed the department secretary to submit a detailed report on the incident and ordered a departmental inquiry to ascertain negligence, if any.
The students suffered burn injuries while playing around a fire during school hours.
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“The department has stopped the salaries of five teachers and issued show-cause notices to other staff members in connection with the incident,” he said.
The minister said that further action would be taken against teachers or staff if negligence in duty was established.
School and Mass Education Secretary N Thirumala Naik said three of the injured students were undergoing treatment at a hospital in Rayagada, while one critically injured student has been shifted to SCB Medical College and Hospital in Cuttack.
The school headmaster had lodged a complaint at Muniguda police station on Monday. Police have recorded statements of the injured students, officials said.
According to preliminary findings, the incident occurred when a classmate of the injured students allegedly threw colour thinner, an inflammable substance, onto a fire that had been lit by the students on the school building’s balcony.
Muniguda police station in-charge inspector Saudamini Behera said the students were playing on the school roof around 2 pm on Monday when they found a bottle of thinner stored there.
They allegedly poured it on the floor and set it on fire using a matchstick. One of the boys later added more thinner, causing the flames to flare up and injure four students, she said.
