Senior Congress leader and Leader of Opposition in Punjab Vidhan Sabha, Partap Singh Bajwa, on Saturday said the Congress would seek nod from the Akal Takht acting Jathedar Kuldeep Singh Gargaj on whether party MLAs were permitted to attend the Assembly session scheduled from August 3 to 10, in view of the Akal Takht edict declaring Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann ‘Guru Dokhi’ and ‘Panth Virodhi’.Bajwa made the remarks while addressing the media during the Congress delegation’s visit to meet injured sanitation workers in Barnala. He was accompanied by senior Congress leaders, including former Chief Minister Charanjit Singh Channi, MP Sukhjinder Singh Randhawa, MLAs Rana Gurjeet Singh, Kuldeep Singh Kala Dhillon, some ex-MLAs and other party leaders.However, the Congress once again appeared divided. Although Punjab Congress president Amrinder Singh Raja Warring was expected to join the Barnala visit, he remained absent.Meanwhile, replying to a query, Bajwa said the Congress would ask the Akal Takht whether they were allowed to attend the Assembly and interact with the Chief Minister in light of the edict. He also expressed doubts over whether the opposition would be given adequate time during the Assembly session to raise public issues and seek answers from the state government.Bajwa said the Congress would raise several issues during the Assembly session, including the pending dearness allowance (DA) of government employees, the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) government’s alleged failure to fulfil election promises, the rising debt burden on the state, and the police action against MGNREGA and sanitation workers.He also alleged that eligible women were not receiving benefits under the Mukh Mantri Maawan Dhiyan Satkar Yojana.Demanding strict action over Wednesday’s lathicharge on protesting sanitation workers in Barnala, Bajwa called for criminal cases to be registered against all police personnel involved. He said merely suspending the DSP was not a punishment, claiming that such officers were often reinstated within a month or two and rewarded with better postings.Referring to some alleged examination paper leaks in Punjab, he said AAP national convener Arvind Kejriwal, Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann and Education Minister Harjot Singh Bains had participated in protests at Jantar Mantar in Delhi against the NEET-UG paper leak and condemned police action there, while the Punjab government itself had ordered a lathicharge on protesting workers in the state.Earlier, former Chief Minister Charanjit Singh Channi said the Congress stood firmly with sanitation workers, farmers, labourers and other sections of society.When asked about Raja Warring’s absence, Channi declined to comment, saying the focus should remain on the sanitation workers’ agitation and the police action against them. He remarked that speaking on internal party matters would divert attention from the workers’ issue.Earlier in the day, Warring, in a live video on his Facebook page, appealed to Congress workers to gather in Barnala in support of the sanitation workers. He also questioned who the duty magistrate was at the site during the police action and demanded action against the Barnala SSP, alleging that the lathicharge was carried out only on instructions from senior police authorities.Warring reiterated the demand for criminal cases against all police personnel involved in the lathicharge. He further claimed that he would visit Barnala in the evening and participate in a candle march in solidarity with the sanitation workers.Meanwhile, former minister and SAD (Punar Surjeet) leader Parminder Singh Dhindsa also participated in the ongoing protest of sanitation workers at the Municipal Corporation Office.