Jalandhar, June 6
Agitated over the suppression of Baba Ramdev’s fight against corruption, workers of the district unit of the BJP today burnt an effigy of the United Progressive Alliance (UPA) government at the Company Bagh chowk here today.

Addressing the protesters, former Local Bodies Minister Manoranjan Kalia said the UPA government had crossed all heights of barbaric act by suppressing the peaceful agitation of Baba Ramdev.

District BJP president Subhash Sood said the masses want end to corruption and bringing back of the unaccounted money from abroad. “Its high time and the people will lead to a revolutionary development in the country through this uprising,” he added.

Gurdaspur: The District Bar Association (DBA) observed a one-day strike against the “atrocities” committed by the Congress-led UPA government on yoga guru Baba Ramdev in New Delhi on the intervening night of June 4 and 5. The SSP, Varinder Pal Singh, monitored the situation and deputed teams across the town to ensure that no untoward incident happened.

The bandh in the town, which has a heavy presence of BJP and RSS activists, was almost complete, while it was business as usual in the adjoining towns of Batala and Pathankot, where a majority of commercial establishments, banks and shops remained opened.

The DBA held a hurriedly convened meeting in the judicial complex in the morning where the association president, Parkash Singh Saini, passed a resolution condemning the attack on Baba Ramdev and his followers.

Shops in the busy Hanuman chowk, Bata chowk, Sadar bazaar, College road and Hardochani road remained closed for the entire day. However, banks, both nationalised and private, remained opened and ATMs functioned normally. Buses, both government and privately owned, ran as per schedule and train services, too, were not disrupted.

In Batala, MLA Jagdeesh Sahni staged a protest along with scores of his followers at Gandhi Chowk, while activists of the RSS and the Punjab Bajrang Dal, too, staged a noisy demonstration today.

Senior BJP leader and Chairman of the Gurdaspur Improvement Trust Ravinder Verma said more such protests would be organised if the UPA government did not apologise to Baba Ram Dev and his followers.

Meanwhile, there were certain dissenting voices in Pathankot over the bandh call. Executive member of the PPCC and Chowdhury Rajbir said the call for a bandh was out of place as Baba Ramdev had become a “self-styled leader of civil society and was holding the government to ransom”.

Nawanshahr: The District Bar Association (DBA) at a meeting, chaired by Mehnga Singh Banwait, president, here on Monday passed a resolution to condemn the police action on the people participating in the hunger strike started by Baba Ramdev to press the Central Government to enact strict laws for the eradication of corruption and to bring back the black money kept in foreign banks.

The DBA decided to observe strike to express solidarity with the issues raised by Baba Ramdev.

Later, the lawyers joined the protest march taken out jointly by the various political, social and religious organisations in the town.

Phagwara: All lawyers belonging to the Phagwara Bar Association went on a one-day token strike in protest against the police excessiveness in the Swami Ramdev episode in New Delhi on Monday.

Lawyers Lalit Chopra, Varinder Sharma, Raman Narang and Lokesh Narang described the episode as the murder of democracy.

Meanwhile, activists of the BJP, BJYM, Mahila Morcha, Vishav Hindu Parishad and Bajrang Dal sat on a 10-hour relay fast in protest against the episode here on Monday.

Former Technical Education Minister Swarana Ram, Improvement Trust Chairman Tejaswi Bhardwaj, Nagar Council president Balbhadhar Sein Duggal and Block BJP president Arun Khosla addressed the activists and expressed full support to the peaceful agitation of Swami Ramdev against increasing corruption. Reports of relay fast were also received from Phillaur and Noormahal.

Hoshiarpur: The local BJP unit on Monday staged a “satyagraha” in protest against the police excessiveness in the yoga guru Ramdev episode during the intervening night of June 4 and 5 at Ramlila ground, New Delhi. Activists of the BJP, including women, staged a day-long dharna in front of the party office at Shastri Market here.

They raised slogans against the UPA government for suppressing the voice of peaceful agitators who were agitating against the prevalent corruption and stashing away of black money abroad.

Activists of Patanjali Yog Samiti and Bharat Swabhiman Trust continued the “satyagraha” in front of the district court on the third consecutive day. Ten persons, including two women, sat on 24-hour fast.

Members of the District Bar Association (DBA) observed strike in protest against the brutal lathi charge of the police on Swami Ramdev and his supporters. 

Nakodar, June 6
The police bowed to the pressure of Sindran villagers in an assault case and arrested two accused after two months of the incident.

Not only this, Shakot SHO Onkar Singh Brar tendered an apology to Amarjit Singh, youth wing president of the Shiromani Rangreta Dal, who led the protest, in front of huge crowd at grain market of Malsain here today.

Earlier, villagers organised a protest against the police for not arresting four accused allegedly involved in assaulting Surjit of Sindhran village two months ago.

Amarjit Singh said the four accused, identified as Harman Singh, Gursarn Singh, Sarbjit and Lovepreet Singh, along with 15 others allegedly took Surjit to some unidentified place where they stripped and thrashed him.

Surjit was allegedly beaten up as he had stopped these four youths from entering the village health club.

A villager had noticed the thrashing episode and revealed it to other villagers.

Later, the matter was reported to the Lohian police. The police though registered a case, no ‘assaulter’ was arrested for the last two months.

Amarjit Singh further alleged that Shahkot SHO today called him and threatened him of dire consequences if any protest or dharna was organised.

Protesting against the misbehaviour of the SHO, villagers organised a protest at Malsian dana mandi.

The SHO reached the spot and tendered his apology in front of the crowd. “I feel sorry if I have hurt sentiments of anybody,” he said.

The Lohian police today arrested Sarbjit and Harmanjit under Sections 323, 365, 506, 342, 148 and 149 of the IPC. Gurlal and Mithu are yet to be arrested. 

Phagwara, June 6
The police busted an inter-district gang of robbers and arrested its four members here today.

City police SHO Amrik Singh Chahal said the arrested were Sat Narayan, Rohit Kumar and Mangal Singh of Phagwara and Gurmukh Singh of Mehaliana village in Nawanshahr. Their fifth accomplice Billa of Mehaliana village managed to escape.

They have been booked under Sections 399 and 402 of the IPC.

Acting on a tip-off, the police nabbed the robbers near the power house on the Khotrra road.

The police recovered a air pistol, motorcycle, and sharp-edged weapons besides a cash of Rs 20,000 from the accused.

Chahal said the gang members were wanted by the police in different robbery cases.

The accused have confessed to their involvement in robbery cases at Chack Hakim village and Subhash Nagar, said the SHO.