Faridkot, August 13: Though the police booked four police officials, including a former SSP, an SP and an inspector of Punjab Police, in a 3-year-old murder case at Behbal Kalan village of Faridkot, it failed to pacify a section of Sikh protesters who had been sitting on a protest dharna at Bargari since June 1 and the family members of those killed in the police firing.
Baljit Singh Daduwal, the parallel jathedar of Takht Damdama Sahib, sitting on the protest dharna at Bargari since June 1, said besides these police officials, political leaders of SAD(B) who were instrumental in these ‘atrocities’ should also be prosecuted. Besides booking these Akali leaders as accused in the criminal case registered at Kotkapura and Bajakhana regarding the October 14, 2015, incidents, the police should arrest all the accused immediately, said Daduwal.
As the complainant in the FIR, registered at Kotkapura on August 7, had named the then Badal-government for the police firing incident at Kotkapura and Behbal Kalan, so the police should book Akali leaders and arrest them. “We will continue our dharna till justice is delivered to all those aggrieved and the accused were arrested and prosecuted,” said Daduwal.
Sukhraj Singh, a son of deceased Krishan Bhagwan Singh, said booking the accused three years after the incident was just a formality. They should be arrested immediately, he demanded.
As per the recommendations of the Justice Ranjit Singh (retd) Commission, the Faridkot police on Saturday nominated Charanjit Sharma, former SSP, Moga (now retired), Bikramjit Singh, the then SP (investigation), Fazilka, inspector Pardeep Singh and Amarjit Singh Kular, a sub inspector as accused in the FIR which was registered under Sections 302, 307 and 34 of the IPC and Sections 25, 27, 54 and 59 of the Arms Act at Bajakhana police station on October 21, 2015.
At the time of the police firing, the protesters were blocking the Bathinda-Kotkapura road near Behbal Kalan village to register their protest against the sacrilege incidents in Bargari and Burj Jawahar Singh Wala.
An FIR (No. 130) was registered against unknown persons about one week after the killing of two Sikh protesters. The complainant in the FIR was Iqbal Singh Sahota, director, bureau of investigation- cum-chairman, Special Investigation Team (SIT). The SIT was constituted on the directions of the Director-General of Police (DGP), Punjab.
As no accused was nominated in this FIR at that time, so this document was kept as a secret, out of public domain for about one month. The family members of the deceased and the protesting Sikh groups could get access to this FIR on November 15, 2015, after they staged a protest dharna in front of houses of Akali members of the legislative assembly (MLAs) in this area, demanding a copy of this FIR.
Source Tribune India
