A day after the supreme court had formed a committee to investigate the security lapse during PM Narendra Modi’s visit to Punjab, Punjab CM Charanjit Singh Channi has regretted the security breach incident and wished the PM a long life. He expressed this afterthought during a meeting of chief ministers called by the PM to take account of the current COVID-19 situations in the country on Thursday 13th January 2022.
Reportedly, Channi also recited a couplet in the meeting in which he said “Tum salamat raho qayamat take, aur khuda kare ki qayamat hi na ho” which means “may you be safe till the end of times, and may the God never end the times”.
Notably, Channi had entangled himself, his government, and his party with his conflicting statements soon after the PM’s security breach incident. Whlle several Congress leaders including his own deputy CM had acknowledged that there was a breach of PM’s security, he has been claiming there was no such breach and it was a minor incident. As recent as in the last week, he had gone on to say, “Where was the threat to his life? Nobody was within a kilometer of you. No stone was thrown, no bullet was fired, no slogans were raised.” Now, this expression of regret from him is seen as a step back after the Supreme court has appointed retired Justice Indu Malhotra to head the panel formed by the court to probe the matter.
#Breaking | Punjab CM Charanjit Singh Channi apologizes to PM Narendra Modi over the security breach.
— TIMES NOW (@TimesNow) January 13, 2022
Megha Prasad with details.#Punjab #CharanjitSinghChanni #NarendraModi pic.twitter.com/7VFzMRVd2w
Channi regrets the PM’s security breach
Prime Minister Modi had called a meeting with the chief ministers of the states to monitor the current situation of COVID-19 in India. In this meeting, while updating the PM about the situations in his state, Punjab CM Charanjit Singh Channi regretted the PM’s security breach incident that took place on 5 January 2022 when PM’s convoy was stuck on a flyover on his way to Hussainiwala in the Ferozepur district of Punjab where the PM was going to visit National Martyr’s Memorial and subsequently address a public meeting. Channi has said that he regrets the PM’s security breach incident that happened during the PM’s visit to Channi’s home state Punjab. He also said that he respects the PM and wishes him a long life.
Channi recites a couplet
Punjab State Congress President Navjyot Singh Siddhu is known for reciting couplets every now and then. Be it a TV show or a public meeting, Siddhu’s address is incomplete without the recital of at least a couplet either relevant or irrelevant to his topic. But this time it was Charanjit Singh Channi who recited a couplet to wish the PM a long life. Channi said, “Tum salamat raho qayamat take, aur khuda kare ki qayamat hi na ho” which means “may you be safe till the end of times, and may the God never end the times”.
Channi had earler quoted Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel in one of his tweets two days after the incident. He used Sardar Patel’s quote to mock the PM. It said, “One who cares more about life than duty, he should not take a big responsibility in a country like India.”
जिसे कर्त्तव्य से ज़्यादा जान की फ़िक्र हो, उसे भारत जैसे देश में बड़ी जिम्मेदारी नहीं लेनी चाहिए !
— Charanjit S Channi (@CHARANJITCHANNI) January 7, 2022
– सरदार वल्लभभाई पटेल pic.twitter.com/zefpEroVAF
It must be noted that prior to the formation of the investigation committee by the Supreme Court, it was the same Channi who had said about the PM’s security breach incident that “Where was the threat to his life? Nobody was within a kilometer of you. No stone was thrown, no bullet was fired, no slogans were raised. How can you say ‘I made it alive’! Such a sensitive statement from such a big leader. People voted you as Prime Minister – you should make responsible statements. You are saying we want to kill our Prime Minister.”
