Edited By: Oindrila Mukherjee
Last Updated: February 09, 2023, 22:20 IST
A vandalised police vehicle after members of the Quami Insaaf Morcha forcibly tried to enter Chandigarh on Wednesday. (Image: PTI)
Violent clashes took place when protesters belonging to the Quami Insaaf Morcha, which is seeking the early release of ‘Bandi Sikhs’, tried marching towards the CM’s residence in Chandigarh
The Punjab Police has come under criticism for failing to prevent a band of protesters from marching towards Chandigarh, which led to a mob-like situation and clashes that left over 40 police personnel from the union territory injured.
The clashes took place late on Wednesday afternoon when protesters belonging to the Quami Insaaf Morcha, which is seeking the early release of ‘Bandi Sikhs’ (Sikh prisoners), tried marching towards the chief minister’s residence in the UT. In shocking footage, which has gone viral, protesters are seen attacking police personnel with swords and other sharp-edged weapons.
The members of the Morcha have sat on a dharna over the past fortnight on the Mohali-Chandigarh border. According to eyewitness accounts, the Punjab Police made no attempt to stop the protesters from marching towards Chandigarh. Police sources said the protesters, who seemed charged up, were allowed to move past their barricades on the border.
“It was when they arrived at those border posts, they started attacking with weapons,” an officer alleged. In an FIR filed by the Chandigarh Police, injured cops have given a statement that protesters snatched a teargas handgun, its ammunition and attempted to kill policemen amid raising of pro-Khalistan slogans during a violent clash with the Chandigarh Police.
The Chandigarh Police lodged the FIR late on Wednesday in which around 40 policemen, including Rapid Action Force personnel, were injured while several police vehicles were damaged. Police have named seven persons, associated with the Morcha that is spearheading the protest, in the FIR while a number of unidentified persons have been booked under 17 sections including 307 (attempt to murder), of the Indian Penal Code, the Arms Act and the Prevention of Damage to Public Property Act.
The protesters attacked police personnel and damaged a water cannon vehicle, a ‘vajra’ (riot-control vehicle), two police jeeps, a firefighting vehicle and some other vehicles with swords and sticks.
But what is alarming is that not just during the violence but even while sitting on the dharna, pro-Khalistan slogans were raised. Intelligence inputs gathered by the UT police have indicated that some anti-national elements might have entered the protest site and tried to “vitiate the atmosphere”.
Security agencies have also been alarmed by how tents have been erected – like during the farmers’ agitation – on the Mohali-Chandigarh border, which has proven to be a nightmare for residents of both cities.
Police identified those who have been booked as Gurcharan Singh, Balwinder Singh, Amar Singh Chahal, Dilsher Singh Jandiala – all associated with the Qaumi Insaaf Morcha. The Chandigarh Police also released CCTV footage of the incident, in which several protesters carrying swords and sticks could be seen attacking police vehicles.
Nihangs (Sikhs armed with traditional weapons), members of several Sikh bodies and others took part in the march. The protesters are seeking the release of Sikh prisoners, including Balwant Singh Rajoana, a convict in former Punjab CM Beant Singh’s assassination, and Devinderpal Singh Bhullar, a 1993 Delhi bomb blast convict. They are also seeking “justice” in the 2015 sacrilege and police-firing incidents in Faridkot.
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