Batala, February 21
Tension prevailed in this industrial township for the second consecutive day today, with the district administration, not willing to take any undue risks, relaxing the curfew for just one hour.
Though the administration claimed that it implemented the curfew strictly, nearly 200 activists drawn from various Hindu bodies, including the VHP, the Bajrang Dal and the Shiva Sena, gathered under the banner of ‘Sangharsh Samiti’ and held a meeting at Quila Mandi. It was addressed by Chief Parliamentary Secretary (Excise and Taxation) and local BJP MLA Jagdeesh Raj Sahni.
There were reports of sporadic incidents of violence in the town, but by and large the situation remained under control. Miscreants disrupted traffic at Adda Tibber and pelted a police party stationed there with stones. DSP (City), Gurdaspur, Ashok Kumar and four other cops sustained injuries in the incident. The police had to fire in air in self-defence. The traffic was restored after some time. A case has been registered against the accused at the Sadar police station.
The administration relaxed the curfew between 6 pm and 7pm, giving the harried residents, who had been staying put inside their houses for the past 24 hours, much-needed relief.
The Batala police had requisitioned 10 companies of the Indian Reserve Battalion (IRB) to maintain peace in the town, which witnessed violent clashes yesterday.
Gurdaspur Deputy Commissioner (DC) Dr Karamjit Singh Sra, along with senior police officials, remained ensconced in the Batala SSP’s office throughout the day to monitor the situation. IG (Border range) IPS Sahota also took several rounds of the city to instill confidence among the locals.
The
police sources disclosed that at Saniyan village nearly 250 Christians gathered in the morning and threatened to take out a demonstration. However, the
