Siropa row: Suspend IG, says Cong

 

Jalandhar, July 16
Just as the hullabaloo over jail officials touching Bibi Jagir Kaur’s feet had died down, the authorities have courted yet another controversy with Jagjit Singh, IG (Jails), receiving a siropa from Bibi at a religious programme at the Kapurthala Modern jail yesterday.

IG (Jails) Jagjit Singh receives a siropa from Bibi Jagir Kaur at the Kapurthala jail on Sunday. A Tribune photo

The Bibi has been getting a VVIP treatment ever since she was jailed on March 30 after she was held guilty of kidnapping her daughter and forcing her to undergo abortion. Throughout the programme yesterday, in which over 1,000 jail inmates recited Sukhmani Sahib, the IG reportedly sat alongside Bibi. At the end of the programme, the IG, Jail Superintendents SP Khanna and Karamjit Singh Sandhu and Deputy Jail Superintendent Iqbal Singh received a siropa from her.
While the Congress Legislature Party Leader Sunil Jakhar has demanded the suspension of the IG, the latter says he has done no wrong. “What is wrong with receiving a siropa from Bibi? A convict now, she has been the head of an institution. Besides, we have been holding such programmes for a peaceful atmosphere inside jails,” he explained.
Jakhar and former Congress MLA Sukhpal Khaira, in a press note, has condemned the incident. “A convict, Bibi Jagir Kaur was not only allowed to address a gathering of officials, visitors and fellow convicts, but also had the audacity to bestow a siropa on senior jail officials.
“This incident not only reflects a breakdown of the jail machinery, but also indicates how criminals rule the roost in Punjab jails. It was this very IG who had given a clean chit to Bibi in an inquiry held three months back to determine if VIP treatment was being given to her while in jail.
“Now, in order to return the favour, Bibi Jagir Kaur has honoured him with a siropa,” the Congress leaders alleged.
They said it was common knowledge that Bibi Jagir Kaur, besides enjoying other facilities in jail, had access to mobile phone services. She regularly called up Kapurthala district officials and those at Chandigarh. “She continues to hold a ‘daily darbar’ at the air-conditioned visitors’ room adjacent to the Jail Superintendent’s office, where she spends most part of the day,” the leaders said.
However, the Jail Superintendent said: “Bibi honoured us with a siropa for curing 900 inmates of their addiction. On an average, we get 10 new inmates daily, of whom at least two are addicts.”

Jagjit Singh Is no more

New Delhi: A soft ghazal in the background, a calm voice of Jagjit Singh singing it, and the world became a peaceful place. That was the magic created by the voice of the ghazal maestro. Being a singer, composer, activist and entrepreneur, Jagjit Singh was a versatile personality.
He sung in several languages including Hindi, Urdu, Punjabi and Nepali.
For someone who entered the arena at a time when Pakistani singers dominated the ghazal industry, making a mark was not easy. But Jagjit Singh, with his golden voice managed to conquer the industry and became one India's finest ghazal singers.

CNN-IBN

In spite of singing ghazals in their purest forms, as singer Asha Bhonsle noted, Jagjit Singh did not hesitate in giving ghazals a new form with changing times. Singh was the first Indian music director to use the technique of multi-track recording for his album 'Beyond Time'.
The Padma Bhushan recipient was the man behind making the genre of ghazal, a genre that was not restricted to a specific age-group. He made simple, yet melodious ghazals that are timeless and can be heard by all.
Prior to Singh, ghazal singing was considered as an elite art, which was difficult for the common mass to understand due to high class Urdu and Persian.
His all time great melodies 'Kaagaz ki kashti', 'Chaak jigar ke', 'Kal chadhanvi ki raat thi', and 'Shaam se aankh me name si hai' are ghazals hummed and sung by one and all.
He mixed the words of legends like Ghalib, Qateel Shifai, Firaq Gorakhpuri, Nida Fazli and Sudarshan Faakir with melodious indigenous tunes and achieved a state where nothing came in between him and his listeners.
Jagjit Singh had also given his voice for ex-prime minister Atal Bihari Bajpayee poems in the albums 'Nayi Disha' and 'Samvedna'.
Today, as the voice became silent, one would hum the Jagjit Singh melody - 'Chitthi na koi sandesh, jaane vo kaun sa desh, jahaan tum chale gaye.' As the man rests in music, his voice will continue to give peace to the listeners.
source : IBN Live