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Delhi Gurdwara Clash
Sarna, Manjit Singh booked
Slight dip in pollution at Golden Temple
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Action against head granthi likely today
Not terrorising govt doctors: CPS
Minister softens stand
Lokpal must have more teeth, says Justice Sekhon
Mining ban: Sand prices soar
Opposition parties again flip-flop on joint meeting
BSP changes state president third time post-assembly poll
Fund-starved govt schools left ‘begging’ for grants
Distillery non polluting: Mittal
Declare Sarabha national martyr, demands Badal
Farmers offered subsidy on seeder machines
Missing Amritsar boy found dead near his house
Water mixed with sewage in Bathinda
Bathinda youth festival to dwell on social issues
Vigilance told to book 8 PUDA officials
NGO to help AIDS patient
Garbage dump makes life difficult for Ropar residents
Panel to monitor ‘secrecy funds’
CJM defers decision on Shruti’s custody
Elderly Patiala couple found murdered
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Delhi Gurdwara Clash
Sources say that Sarna is facing problems in running the gurdwara affairs as Shanty is reportedly not cooperating with him. Gurdwara funds can only be cleared with the consent of both the DSGMC president and the general secretary. The executive meeting called at Rakabganj Sahib yesterday was to discuss the "running of gurdwara affairs smoothly" and Shanty apparently apprehended that his wings would be clipped. So, he reportedly invited SAD (Badal) leaders to the meeting to counter any such attempt. Talking to The Tribune, Sarna said ever since Shanty's wife was elected councillor on the BJP ticket, he had been "hobnobbing" with the SAD (Badal). He alleged that he had been indulging in corrupt practices for the past some time." We did not plan to take away all his powers, but definitely wanted to curtail these. Shanty has no authority to have a special invitee at the executive meeting without my consent," Sarna said. On the other hand, Shanty maintained that he had the authority to call any elected DSGMC member to the meeting and that he had been doing so in the past too. He said the opposition had been levelling charges of corruption on the manner in which the DSGMC affairs were being run and regarding a hospital on the premises of Gurdwara Bala Sahib. "Hence, I thought it would be prudent to invite all four SAD (Badal) members to the meeting where the two issues were to be taken up," Shanty said. He denied he had refused to sanction funds for DSGMC works and claimed to have stopped funds " that Sarna wanted to use for his party affairs." He said he had even brought the issue to the notice of New Delhi Lieut Governor Tejinder Khanna.
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Sarna, Manjit Singh booked
New Delhi, November 16 They have been booked under Sections 147 (rioting), 148 (armed with deadly weapons), 149 and 307 (attempt to murder) of the Indian Penal Code. The police has started collecting evidence and recording the statements of witnesses. There was ample evidence to book those involved in the clash, including CCTV footage, sources said. A police officer involved in the investigations, said: “No shots were fired. Swords were brandished but not used. Neither were lathis used. The groups resorted to throwing stone at each other.” Manjit Singh GK had complained that Sarna had hit him on the head with a kirpan. Activists of the DSGMC task force were seen carrying lathis and swords during the clash yesterday. Sunil Saxena, Chief Medical Officer, RML Hospital, said “Manjit Singh GK had a skin-deep injury on his head which could have been caused by a blunt object”. The police will also question its own personnel.
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Slight dip in pollution at Golden Temple
Making public the data about pollution and noise-level tests conducted on Divali and Bandi Chhod Diwas (on November 13), the Punjab Pollution Control Board (PPCB) said as compared to 402 respirable suspended patriculate matter (RSPM) in 2011, the level this year around Harmandar Sahib was 390 RSPM. The decision by the Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee (SGPC) to reduce the duration of fireworks at the Golden Temple from 15 to 10 minutes this year has apparently paid back. However, the decrease of 12 points in RSPM level could not shift the position of the Golden Temple vicinity from being the most polluted and noisy part of the city. The holy complex was way ahead of the second most-polluted area of the city — situated near a hospital — where the level was 361 RSPM. Similarly, RSPM content in residential and commercial areas was recorded at 360 and 358 RSPM, respectively. Similarly, noise level was also found to be the highest around the Golden Temple complex at 74 dB. It showed a marginal decrease of a dB as compared to last year. Closely following it was a commercial area at 73 dB. PPCB Executive Engineer Jaswant Singh Randhawa said the recording of pollution and noise level around the holy complex was initiated last year after a study pointed out that these factors were affecting the grandeur of the shrine and its gold plating. The PPCB had advised the SGPC to ban bursting of firecrackers at the Golden Temple complex. However, the SGPC had said they could not discontinue fireworks altogether as it was a traditional way to celebrate the occasion and devotees’ sentiments were attached to it. Though the local administration in the past had earlier initiated measures like banning coal-run hearths being used by goldsmiths around the shrine and providing LPG connections to them, a lot still needs to be done to make the vicinity smoke-free. The number of private vehicles plying in the area is also considerably high. The SGPC also has to expedite its efforts to modernise 'langar' facility in a bid to curb pollution. This is the second successive year when the SGPC has curtailed the duration of fireworks so as to protect the holy shrine from pollution. Last year, the Golden Temple had witnessed fireworks for only 15 minutes on Divali, which was half as compared to previous years.
Action against head granthi likely today
Amritsar: The SGPC executive is likely to initiate action against the head granthi of Sri Harmandar Sahib, Jasvinder Singh, in its Ludhiana meeting on Saturday for skipping “Chaupai Sahib” while performing the ‘path’ of ‘Rehraas Sahib’ at the sanctum sanctorum last evening.
Sources said the SGPC authorities started receiving calls from India and abroad as soon as the head granthi committed the mistake on Thursday evening as Gurbani recital from the Golden Temple was being telecast live in various countries. Akal Takht Jathedar Giani Gurbachan Singh said Jasvinder admitted to have committed the mistake inadvertently. Sources said the head granthi was reportedly asked to resign, but he declined to do so. There are reports that the SGPC may either remove him from his post or transfer him elsewhere. —
TNS
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Not terrorising govt doctors: CPS
Talking to The Tribune on the phone, Dr Sidhu said she had received calls from the medical fraternity praising her efforts to expose unscrupulous government doctors running private clinics. "I am against 5 per cent doctors running private clinics while neglecting their duty. "Why should a salary of more than Rs 1 lakh per month be paid to a doctor who is not honest with his work. We can either keep three doctors at a salary of Rs 50,000 per month or provide medicines worth Rs 1.5 lakh to the poor instead of retaining such a doctor," she said. On the Ropar doctor, she said:"I tracked him during his duty hours for three consecutive days before acting against him. I don't have the powers to initiate departmental action against such doctors. I am just bringing the malpractices to the notice of the Health Minister. I still respect him," she said. When contacted, Punjab BJP chief Ashwani Sharma said the matter would be resolved at the earliest. He refused to elaborate.
Minister softens stand
Mittal said, “While I am strictly against government doctors involved in private practice, I am also against sting operations by politicians.” The minister was here to attend a meeting of district administration officials to take stock of arrangements for the state-level Aarogya Mela to be held at Anandpur Sahib next week. Talking to mediapersons, he said complaints against government doctors should be forwarded to the officials concerned for action. He said all medical hospitals in the state would be provided with adequate stocks of generic drugs beginning January 1, 2013. To overcome the shortage of doctors, the transfer policy would be rationalised and medical specialists shifted to hospitals where they were needed most.
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Lokpal must have more teeth, says Justice Sekhon
Chandigarh, November 16 Justice Sekhon said in Karnataka, the Lokpal had its own building and staff to conduct investigations into various departments as well as cases pertaining to acquisition of disproportionate assets. He maintained he did not have any party affiliations as was being claimed by the Punjab Congress. He said his brother Janmeja Singh Sekhon was a member of the state Cabinet but it was wrong to say that he was related to Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal. "I am not a relative of the Chief Minister," he said, adding that he had taken oath of allegiance and was committed to serving his six-year term by working in an impartial and fair manner. The new Lokpal expressed reservations at the manner in which the investigation wing of his office had been severely undermanned over the years. He said his job was to supervise the investigation wing but the wing was incapable of investigating cases as it had only one Inspector-General of Police (IGP) and seven constables. He said he had been told that there were 63 police officials in the Lokpal investigation wing, including a Deputy Inspector-General (DIG), two Superintendents of Police (SPs), four Deputy Superintendents of Police (DSPs) and eight Inspectors and Sub-Inspectors. The Lokpal was also told that computers in the office could not be utilised as manpower deputed at the office had been repatriated. Speaking after the swearing-in ceremony, Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal brushed aside Congress objections to Justice Sekhon's appointment. The Punjab Pradesh Congress Committee in a press note said its president Amarinder Singh had approached the Governor against Justice Sekhon's appointment on the plea that the Lokpal's brother was a minister in the state government. Amarinder said: " Justice Sekhon is a person of deep political connections as his stepbrother Janmeja Singh Sekhon is a Cabinet Minister . I am also given to understand that Justice Sekhon's wife is a close relative of the Chief Minister."
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Mining ban: Sand prices soar
The price of sand was around Rs 18 per sq foot six months ago, and now since the ban came into effect, the price had escalated to Rs 32-35 per sq foot. These days, only those contractors, who were in the middle of finishing a project, were purchasing sand. In August, the Punjab and Haryana High Court had ordered a complete ban on mining without environmental clearance in operational quarries of up to five hectares in the states of Punjab and Haryana. The court had stated that both the states could permit mining in these areas, but only after obtaining an environment clearance from the State Environment Impact Assessment Authority. Sand is a major component for any construction activity as most contractors used sand and cement in the ratio of 66:33 during construction. A contractor, requesting anonymity, said that mining of sand cost around Rs 18-20 in Pathankot area, while it cost around Rs 30 in Machiwara area of Ludhiana. "Even though sand mining is banned, it's easily available on double rates. We feel that though the police is registering FIRs against the offenders, this has given birth to a new kind of corruption," he said. Over the years, sand mining has become a money-spinner in Punjab. Such has been the impact of the mining ban that even the company named Soma, which is involved in the six laning of GT Road (from Panipat to Jalandhar), suspended its construction work five months ago. Not only this, even contractors carrying out smaller projects are suffering. A contractor, who is constructing a godown for Food Corporation of India (FCI) in Bathinda area, said, "I wonder why the state government is not making any efforts to make sure that the clearances can be sought at a faster pace. If the FCI godowns are not constructed soon, the food grains will rot in the open." Pardeep Kumar, project manager with Supreme Infrastructure, the company constructing the Sidhwan Canal Expressway, here, said, "The supply is very little. Our daily requirement is of 20 trucks but we are only able to get 4-5 trucks daily which is resulting in delay." With construction activity slowing down, many labourers are finding it increasingly difficult to find work. A senior government official, who did not wish to be named, said that ever since the ban on mining, the process of getting clearances has become cumbersome. "Before the final clearance is given, the process moves through seven different stages. Until we get the clearances, people will keep on suffering," he said.
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Opposition parties again flip-flop on joint meeting
Chandigarh, November 16 PPP chief Manpreet Badal, who had convened the meeting, said it had been deferred as the Congress leadership was busy preparing for a fresh membership enrolment drive scheduled to begin on November 19. Besides, there had been a change in the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) leadership in the state, he said. Though Manpreet cited these reasons, there are reports that neither the Congress nor the BSP was keen on attending the meeting. After failing in its attempts to rope in new partners, the Sanjha Morcha — the political coalition comprising the PPP, CPI, CPM and SAD (Longowal-Barnala) that was formed ahead of the recent Assembly elections — has decided to hold its convention at Desh Bhagat Yadgar Hall in Jalandhar on December 5. The main aim behind holding the meeting is to form a strategy to hold statewide protests against the ruling SAD-BJP regime from December 10-17. Manpreet said among the issues they would be highlighting were the “deteriorating” law and order situation in the state and spiralling prices of sand and gravel (used as construction material). “The common man is facing hardships as sand and gravel prices have hit the roof. Mafia enjoying support of ruling politicians has established its monopoly over sand and gravel mines,” he said.
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BSP changes state president third time post-assembly poll
Jalandhar, November 16 The BSP today formally declared Parkash Singh Jandali as the state president, relieving Avtar Singh Karimpuri of the responsibility. The party has done several flip-flops by removing, re-appointing and again removing Karimpuri over the past seven months. After the poll results, grapevine was abuzz that Karimpuri had allegedly sided with the SAD leadership, which proved detrimental for his own party. There was much opposition within the Punjab BSP cadres against Karimpuri, who himself chose to withdraw from the top post in April. A fortnight later, his close confidant Gurlal Saila was declared the party chief. The rift within the party continued and rallies were held against the decision with his rival camp claiming that Saila's appointment was allegedly against merit. In June again, Saila was replaced by Karimpuri. Recently, the party decided to appoint Jandali, who has been representing Qila Raipur constituency in Ludhiana, as the party chief, thereby, replacing Karimpuri again. An announcement to this effect, however, was made by party's national secretary Narinder Kashyap today. Besides, Haryana-based Parkash Bharti will be coordinator for the Punjab Lok Sabha polls. Karimpuri has been told to take care of Himachal Pradesh in next parliamentary polls.
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Fund-starved govt schools left ‘begging’ for grants
Bathinda, November 16 A government letter dated August 14, issued by the Director General of School Education, had asked schools to encourage social workers and donors to contribute towards a special welfare fund planned specially to accept such charity, said sources. Under the scheme, the state government had promised appreciation letters and rewards for principals or teachers who performed well in the sphere. The initiation of the scheme proves that the Education Department has no option but to beg for funds. This, however, did not deter Sukhbir from extending his largesse to a rich school like Sanawar, a teacher said. Sources in the Education Department said a sort of competition was on between teachers within a school to bring as many donors as possible. School managements are also vying with each other to generate more funds than the other. A school principal said though his team had collected Rs 70,000, senior officials gave example of a school that had generated more. The scheme entails that the special welfare fund would be managed by a three-member committee comprising school principal, president of school management committee and senior-most teacher in the school. A senior Education Department official said the fund was created to facilitate donations to schools. “Social workers approach us for giving donations to schools. This fund will help further strengthen infrastructure,” he said, declining to comment on the shortage of funds plaguing the department.
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Distillery non polluting: Mittal
Bathinda, November 16 Mittal claimed his unit was among the best managed distilleries in north India and had the latest technology and instruments needed to run the plant sans pollution. "Our waste is white in colour and not dark brown or black as the AFDR has claimed. It is not the BCL distillery but the rice mills located nearby that are releasing the toxic and untreated waters into the Lasara drain," he said. Mittal claimed that his was a zero-pollution industry that did not release even a litre of untreated water. "Water has been allocated to us from the irrigation department as is done in the case of all projects. No project can run without the required supply of water. People are opposing the industry in the area whereas we will create job opportunities for the locals and have put the village on the state map. People should understand that urbanisation begets environmental crisis," he said. Mittal added that water as residue is used within the precincts of the project for watering the plants and maintaining the green belt. The AFDR had stated that the distillery was using a 22 feet wide village circular road connecting it with the village, instead of developing its own road. The workers of the NGO had pointed out that the distillery's traffic has destroyed standing crop in the adjoining fields, small bridges on the water channels and electric poles along the road causing inconvenience to the villagers. However, Mittal claimed that the BCL had paid Punjab Government Rs 40 lakhs to lay that road. "There was no road earlier. It is up to villagers if they want to use the road or move on the kutcha roads," he said.
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Declare Sarabha national martyr, demands Badal
Sarabha, November 16 The demand was raised by the residents of Sarabha village and the martyr’s followers led by office-bearers and activists of Kartar Singh Sarabha Charitable Trust and other organisations. Badal said besides sending a communiqué, he would himself meet Prime Minister Manmohan Singh over the issue. He said successive governments at the Centre had allegedly failed to recognise the sacrifices made by Sarabha and his associates.
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Farmers offered subsidy on seeder machines
Fatehgarh Sahib, November 16 Deputy Commissioner Yashvir Mahajan, while inaugurating an exhibition of Happy Seed machines that sow wheat seeds, urged farmers not to burn the stubble after the harvesting the paddy. He asked farmers to use these machines that mixed the stubble with the earth making it more fertile. Mahajan said that in order to encourage the farmers to sow wheat seeds using these machines, the Agriculture Department was offering a subsidy under the Atma scheme. He said at present 34 Happy Seeder machines were available with the department and out of these, 27 had been purchased by the farmers on subsidy. He said the total cost of the machine was Rs 1.10 lakh and the same was offered to farmers for Rs 70 thousand each. He said that last year a subsidy of Rs 18.90 lakh had been distributed among the farmers in the district and added that 2,500 quintals of wheat seed would be distributed among the farmers at the rate of Rs 500 per quintal. Mahajan said in order to encourage the farmers to grow different varieties of crops, the department had distributed 500 mini kits of 10 kg mustard seeds. He also directed the Agriculture Department to arrange tours for the farmers to different destinations in the country where progressive farmers had adopted modern techniques to grow different crops.
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Missing Amritsar boy found dead near his house
Amritsar, November 16 Gurkirat had gone missing on November 7. The police had initially lodged a missing report but after a couple of days, it registered a kidnapping case against unidentified persons. ADCP (crime) Harjit Singh Brar said, “From the condition of the body, it can be said that the boy may have been killed a couple of days ago. But anything concrete can be said only after a post-mortem examination.”
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Water mixed with sewage in Bathinda
Bathinda, November 16 Brij Bhan and Amit Bansal, both residents of the area, said they had faced similar problem a year ago. Immediate action should be taken before a large number of people fall ill, they demanded. Other residents of the area like Kharak Singh, Krishan Lal, Gurmit Singh, Amarjeet Singh, Taranjeet Singh and Raj Kumar were also of the same view. Meanwhile, municipal councillor of the area, Shanti Jindal, said she was informed about the problem on Wednesday. "I have spoken to the municipal corporation officials as well as the sewerage board. It seems that some sewer pipe started leaking and because of this, the supply water is getting mixed with drinking water," Jindal added.
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Bathinda youth festival to dwell on social issues
Bathinda, November 16 District and Sessions judge and the chairman, District Legal Services Authority, Jaspal Singh, was the chief guest on the occasion. In his address, the judge said to promote legal literacy and awareness among the youngsters, these youth fests are being held. Social issues and problems have also been encompassed at the fest to make the younger generation aware about them as well. The youth fest will deal with issues related to women and child rights, domestic violence against women, female
foeticide, drug addiction, bribery, fundamental rights and duties, environmental protection, anti-ragging, child labour and the rights of senior citizens. The participants will present documentary, skits, slogans, posters, debate, poetry recitation and photography. Civil judge (senior division)-cum-secretary, District Legal Services Authority,
Ferozepur, Jaspal Verma said legal aid clinics are being opened in Ferozepur to promote legal literacy. A legal literacy club is also being opened in every college, he added. He added that on November 17, the zonal fest will be held at Adesh University,
Bathinda, wherein Members of Association for Democratic Rights allege that distilleries discharging effluents in Lasara drain are damaging environment of the Punjab and Haryana High Court will be the chief guest. Justice Rakesh Kumar
Jain, also of the Punjab and Haryana High Court, will preside over the function. President, District Bar Association, Ranjit Singh Jalal and chairman, SSD Girls' College, Nand Lal Garg were present. Besides, secretary, District Legal Services Authority,
Faridkot, Rakesh Mittal, secretary, District Legal Services Authority,
Muktsar, Daljit Singh Ralhan, chief judicial magistrate Harjit Singh
Khalsa, judicial officers, advocates, assistant district attorney Surinder
Sachdeva, RK Sharma, Navneet Gupta, college teachers etc.
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Vigilance told to book 8 PUDA officials
Mohali, November 16 SK Sandhu, Principal Secretary to the CM, said the details were available with the Director-General of Police
(DGP), Vigilance Bureau, Suresh Arora. However, Arora said: "We have not received any such directions so far."
Tarlochan Singh, who is posted as Chief Engineer, GMADA, claimed that he was innocent. "I attended office today. Had I been guilty, I would not have been here. A certain official wants to malign me and have me transferred, he said.
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Bathinda, November 16 The woman, Puja Rani, said the family earns its livelihood by doing menial jobs. Her eldest son fell ill and was admitted to a hospital where he was diagnosed with AIDS. — TNS
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Garbage dump makes life difficult for Ropar residents
Ropar, November 16 The civic body chose to set up a dumping ground here even though residents of Haveli, Akbarpur, Shahpur and Asron villages had opposed the move. The residents of Rauta village alleged that the sarpanch of Bhaini village had agreed to earmark the location of the dumping ground even though it was a health hazard for them. The village panchayat was clubbed with Bhini village panchayat and it ignored their interests and allowed the dumping of garbage in their area, said Karnail Singh of Rauta village. “The garbage has been dumped here for the last six months and since then the number of flies and mosquitoes have multiplied alarmingly in the area,” said Jogindro Devi, Sarpanch of Surtapur village. The stink raised by the garbage has made the life of residents miserable, she said. Ashok Kumar, executive officer of the Municipal Council, said the site for dumping the garbage was chosen after the consent of the village panchayat. He said that he had received the complaints of the residents and would address their grievances soon, he said.
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Panel to monitor ‘secrecy funds’
Chandigarh, November 16 During the resumed hearing of a PIL filed by advocate HC Arora before the Punjab and Haryana High Court today, the Secretary, Department of School Education, Ravneet Kaur, filed an affidavit before the Bench of Chief Justice Arjan Kumar Sikri and Justice Rakesh Kumar Jain, stating that the department had constituted the committee in compliance with the court orders passed on September 11. The committee comprises the Secretary, School Education, a representative of the Finance Department with a rank not below that of Additional Secretary, a representative of the Printing and Stationery Department and the PSEB Chairman.
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CJM defers decision on Shruti’s custody
Faridkot, November 16 A disappointed NK Jeet, counsel for Shruti’s parents, said: "It is surprising that on November 8 when we filed the applications in the court seeking the termination of pregnancy and Shruti's presence in court to decide on her custody, the state counsel neither raised any objection nor expressed the desire to file a reply to the application. Today when the court was to decide on these applications, the state counsel sought an adjournment." He said it was a deliberate attempt to delay a decision on these applications so that Shruti continued to be lodged at the Nari Niketan, Jalandhar, under police supervision. Shruti, 15, was kidnapped from her house here on September 24 and found in Goa on September 21. In two separate applications before the CJM on November 8, Shruti’s father Ashwani Sachdeva, had demanded the medical termination of the pregnancy of his minor daughter, terming it as unwanted conception. The father had pleaded that as his minor daughter was a rape victim, the pregnancy would be a grave injury to her mental health. His counsel had quoted Section 2 (i) of the Medical Termination of Pregnancy Act, 1971, under which the pregnancy of a rape victim, if she is a minor, can be terminated with the written consent of her guardians. In his second application, the father had demanded the custody of his daughter now lodged at the Nari Niketan in
Jalandhar.
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Elderly Patiala couple found murdered
Patiala, November 16 It appeared that the man was repeatedly hit with a sharp-edged weapon and the woman died of a heart attack as she did not have any injury marks. The victims have been identified as Rameshwar Singh (73) and Harjeet Kaur (62) and were living in a government house in Rajpura colony. Police suspect the role of someone known to the couple in the crime as there were no signs of a forcible entry. They also did not recover any weapon from the crime scene. Patiala Inspector General of Police Paramjit Singh Gill and Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) Gurpreet Singh Gill inspected the crime scene here today afternoon. The elderly couple had a son but lived separately, with their son living in a nearby locality. The bodies of the couple were discovered by their servant in the morning following which he informed the cops. “Prima facie it seems that someone known to the family entered the house and attacked the man with a sharp-edged weapon. It appears that the woman died of a heart attack as her body had no external injury marks. However we can only confirm this after getting the postmortem report,” said SSP Gill. “The couple had some financial problems, but nothing concrete could be said at the moment,” Gill said. Sources confirmed that the woman was allegedly corrupt and an FIR in this regard had already been lodged against her in Samrala in 2008. “However, nearly Rs nine lakh in cash and some gold ornaments had been recovered from the house which ruled out a robbery attempt,” said the police.
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Gang of robbers busted in Rajpura
Rajpura, November 16
On being questioned, they admitted to their involvement in over 50 cases pertaining to theft and robbery. Members of the Bawria gang would board trains to various destinations from their villages in UP to commit robberies. “Upon arriving at their destination, they would buy or steal a motorcycle and use it for transportation as they rob people at gun point,” said Brar. Rajpura Superintendent of Police Bhupinder Khatra said that after committing a few robberies, the gang members parked their motorcycles at a railway station and fled to UP, where they sold the robbed valuables in lieu of money and drugs. “The gang has admitted to their involvement in over a dozen incidents in Delhi and Ambala, 10 in Fatehgarh Sahib and 15 in Patiala,” said Khatra. Police has recovered 110 gm of gold from the accused and are conducting raids in UP to arrest the kingpin, who helped the gang dispose of the ornaments. “Further, we have identified three more persons, who were involved in the crimes, namely Charan Singh, Sonu and Sandeep,” Brar said. Police records show that the Bawria gang is cruel and have been active in parts of rural Punjab for the past two decades. “They can kill mercilessly using iron rods and sharp-edged weapons and were earlier known as the “Kala Katcha” gang. The gang members with oil massaged on their bodies would enter a house, attack the occupants and kill anyone who tried to stop them. However, the present generation is involved in armed robberies and uses bikes to escape from the crime scene,” added Brar, who has investigated many such cases in the past.
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