Congress seeks removal of Vikas Barala, Anu Pal from Haryana AG office
Asks what criteria were fixed for appointments
NEW DELHI: The Congress today strongly criticised the appointment of Vikas Barala, the son of former Haryana BJP state president Subhash Barala and an accused in a stalking case, to the office of the Advocate General of Haryana.
The party also took strong exception to the appointment of Ms Anu Pal, the younger sister of Justice Lisa Gill, to the AG’s office. Justice Gill had granted bail to Vikas Barala in January 2018.
Addressing a press conference at the AICC office here today, Congress leader and Supreme Court lawyer Ms Mahima Singh urged the Advocate General to immediately revoke these appointments.
Ms Singh asked the Advocate General of Haryana, Pravindra Singh Chauhan, and the BJP government to explain why thousands of proficient and able advocates were sidelined in favour of BJP loyalists to represent the critical cause of justice.
She asked what the reason was that thousands of applicants were ignored while the likes of Vikas Barala were selected. “Isn’t it compromised appointments like these that enable the likes of Ram Rahim to get frequent paroles before elections—16 times in a row?” she asked.
Ms Singh noted that crimes against women have become the BJP’s identity card—whether it was former minister Sandeep Singh, accused of sexually harassing a coach; BJP State President Mohan Lal Badoli, accused of gang rape earlier this year; or their entire system standing guard to protect Vikas Barala today.
Seeking the immediate revocation of the appointments of Vikas Barala and Anu Pal, she demanded that the selection criteria for such appointments be made public and transparent.
Ms Singh also demanded that the Advocate General take steps for speedy justice for the daughters of Haryana and work to fortify the people’s trust in the judiciary.
