NHRC member Priyank Kanoongo slams Kejriwal for ‘supporting’ Punjab’s unsafe sleeper buses

New Delhi, Oct 24 (IANS) National Human Rights Commission member Priyank Kanoongo on Saturday hit out at AAP National Convenor Arvind Kejriwal for alleging ulterior motives behind the Commission’s public safety-oriented step to weed out unsafe sleeper buses in Punjab. 

Pointing to a discrepancy in the Punjab government’s claim that there were no sleeper buses registered in the state and Kejriwal’s objections to the NHRC’s initiative, Kanoongo said on X, “Don't be afraid, Arvind! We haven't yet launched an investigation into the commissions you're getting from running these buses.”

“You're so greedy and foolish that you're playing with innocent citizens' lives for the sake of your commissions and your authoritarian ways,” he wrote.

“Don't take commissions and ensure safe bus travel — that's all there is to it. If any citizen's life is endangered due to your chaos and authoritarianism, you'll end up back in jail,” said Kanoongo, referring to Kejriwal’s earlier jail stint in Delhi in connection with the controversial excise policy and alleged kickbacks from the liquor mafia.

He reminded the AAP National Convenor that the NHRC notice to the Punjab government was part of a nationwide exercise.

He said, “For the past year, we've been taking continuous action against such non-standard buses and have had 1,000 such buses removed from operation or subjected to restrictive measures across the country.”

“During our actions, the Punjab Transport Department also sent this response in January 2026, in which they stated that no sleeper coach buses are even registered in the state. This response is contradictory, so we must find out how these buses are operating, which is why we've written to initiate an investigation — because every single citizen's life is invaluable,” he said.

Earlier, Kejriwal questioned the NHRC’s probe into the safety of sleeper buses in Punjab.

“The country's largest human rights institution, NHRC, has conducted bus inspections for the first time in its history. Which buses? The super deluxe buses that take Punjab's people on pilgrimages. What deficiencies were found in them? Like, why is there a partition between the driver and the passengers? Has NHRC inspected UP Roadways buses? No. Have they inspected roadways buses from any other state? No. Only the pilgrimage super deluxe buses from Punjab were inspected,” wrote Kejriwal on X.

The NHRC’s action started after it received a complaint about the allegedly unsafe buses being run in Punjab. The complainant was Network for Access to Justice and Multidisciplinary Outreach Foundation.

Following the receipt of the complaint, the NHRC bench headed by Kanoongo issued notices to the state government.

--IANS

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