Parkash Singh Badal was equally responsible for Operation Bluestar: Amarinder Singh

CHANDIGARH: Upping the ante against Punjab Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal, former CM Amarinder Singh today asked the incumbent to clarify whether he had met a senior central minister in New Delhi before going into the "hiding" ahead of Operation Bluestar.

Singh said the people wanted to know about it since "this is crucial to Badal's role and stand on the operation, particularly after he went into hiding leading to a lot of suspicion about his voluntary disappearance".

The former CM, who was involved in negotiations before the operation, held Badal "equally responsible" for it and said "he (Badal) was one of the main reasons for leading to such a situation.

Refuting Badal's claim that he was put behind bars by the then Congress government, he said Badal was a free man before, during and after the operation and deliberately went into hiding "for reasons best known to him".

The Congress leader accused Badal of trying to make political capital out of this situation.