‘It is final, airport to be named after Shaheed Bhagat Singh’

Akash Ghai

Tribune News Service

Mohali, January 3 

While Congress men are all set to hold a padyatra from tomorrow in support of their demand for naming the international airport at Mohali after freedom fighter Shaheed Bhagat Singh, SAD leader Prem Singh Chandumajra has claimed that a decision in this regard has already been finalised.

“The airport will be named after Shaheed Bhagat Singh. The Haryana Chief Minister has already given his nod and the decision has been finalised,” said Chandumajra, MP from the Anandpur Sahib constituency.

He said in all probability, the name of the airport will be Shaheed Bhagat Singh Chandigarh International Airport, Mohali. “Actually, we want to include both Mohali and Chandigarh in the name of the airport,” said Chandumajra.

The Punjab Youth Congress will start a padyatra from Khatkar Kalan to the Mohali airport tomorrow to press for their demand of naming the airport after Shaheed Bhagat Singh. The padyatra will be flagged off by Capt Amarinder Singh.  

Terming the padyatra a mere stunt, Chandumajra said he failed to understand the motive behind the Congress move. “When it’s final that the airport will be named after Shaheed Bhagat Singh, where is the need for holding the padyatra. In fact, the party has no development agenda and that’s why it is indulging in such stunts,” said Chandumajra.

Brinder Singh Dhillon, president of the Youth Congress (Anandpur Sahib), said the Shiromani Akali Dal-BJP government was misleading the public on the issue. “There is an SAD-BJP government in Punjab and a Bharatiya Janata Party government in Haryana as well as at the Centre. 

Why has the issue been kept in abeyance for more than six months? They (Shiromani Akali Dal-BJP) are just misleading the people and that is why we are holding a padyatra in this connection,” said Dhillon. 

International flights yet to take off

The international airport was inaugurated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on September 11 and it became operational from October 19. International flights are yet to take off from the international airport.