Former Punjab minister Navjot Singh Sidhu begins nine-day-long 'maun vrat' in Patiala jail

Congress leader and former Punjab minister Navjot Singh Sidhu, who is currently in Patiala jail after he was sentenced by the Supreme Court in a 34-year-old case of road rage, began a "maun vrat" (fasting for silence) on Monday.

The former Local Bodies Minister in Punjab will observe the fast during the nine-day Navratri festival, which began on Monday, his wife informed on social media.

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Taking to Sidhu’s official Twitter account, his wife Navjot Kaur Sidhu said, "My husband will observe silence during the Navaratri and will meet visitors after the 5th of October."

In May this year, the Supreme Court had sentenced Sidhu to one-year rigorous imprisonment in the case, saying any undue sympathy in imposing an inadequate sentence would do more harm to the justice system and undermine the public confidence in the efficacy of law.

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A 65-year-old man, named Gurnam Singh, had died in the incident. When reporters sought Sidhu's reaction to the verdict on Thursday, he had declined to comment. However, he had later tweeted to say he "will submit to the majesty of the law".

Though the apex court had in May 2018 held Sidhu guilty of the offence of "voluntarily causing hurt" to the man, it had spared him a jail term and imposed a fine of Rs 1,000.

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Gurnam Singh's family had sought a review of the judgement, which was allowed by the Supreme Court.

• Navjot Singh Sidhu
• Punjab
• Gurnam Singh
• Congress