Kartarpur, June 24
An NRI, his wife and two daughters, besides two acquaintances, were crushed to death as their car collided with a Dera Beas bound bus here today.

The UK based NRI has been identified as Gurmit Singh Billa, who had recently come to his native Jandu Singha village. They had come here today to pick up Hardip Singh of the Katni Gate locality, and Hardip Singh of Gardiwala (Hoshiarpur). They were going to Jalandhar.

All six occupants of the car, died on the spot.

A large number of passers-by and residents reached the spot after hearing an explosion. They took Sonia to a hospital in Jalandhar where she died.

The Jalandhar Deputy Commissioner and the SSp also reached the spot. The driver of the bus, Sukhwinder Singh, has been arrested. The DC also visited the hospital.

The stretch of the GT Road passing through Kartarpur is known as a “killer road” because of the large number of accidents. Residents have been demanding better traffic management. 

Amritsar, June 24
The SHO of the Tarn Taran city police station was today nabbed from his residence by the Vigilance Bureau (VB) for possessing a large quantity of arms and drugs and for suspected links with the Khalistan Liberation Force.

The VB laid a trap on the complaint of Santokh Singh of Jalandhar against Sub Inspector Naurang Singh, SHO, for demanding bribe. However, during the raid at his house, the VB seized a cache of arms, including a 32 bore pistol, one 38 bore pistol, an AK 47, a carbine, a 12 bore rifle, 12 drum magazines, 324 live rounds, three kg bhukki, one kg black bhukki, five-litre of countrymade liquor, 800 capsules, five mobile phones and Rs 20,850.

A magazine cover has the name of KLF painted on it which forced Vigilance sleuths to suspect him to be an associate of outlawed organisation that wreaked havoc during the militancy.

Mr R.P.S. Bajwa, SSP, Vigilance Bureau, addressing mediapersons said complainant Santokh Singh informed them that Naurang Singh had been harassing him and demanding Rs 95,000 otherwise he would implicate his son Manwinder Singh.

According to the SSP, Manvinder Singh had developed illicit relations with Monika of Tarn Taran. They came in contact with each other as Monika’s two sisters were married in Jalandhar. He said the complainant alleged that Monika, her three brothers Makhan Singh, Shooka and Satta, and her uncle and aunt Doddy and Rani were involved in the trade of narcotics.

On May 30, a fight broke out between Monika and her relatives and Manvinder Singh but soon it was resolved. Subsequently, her relations with Manvinder again got strained. She approached the SHO, who picked up Manvinder on June 20 from Jalandhar.

Mr Bajwa said the SHO demanded Rs 5 lakh for his release. After much persuasion, Naurang Singh accepted Rs. 1,65,000 and released Manvinder. However, later he began to ask for Rs. 95,000 more. In case of inability of non payment, he threatened to implicate Manvinder.

At this point Santokh Singh approached the Vigilance Bureau who guided him to ask Naurang for the place of payment. He invited Santokh to his place following which the VB conducted raid.

Amritsar, June 24
The Sikh Panth including the SGPC and the SAD, seems to have forgotten Master Tara Singh, the first leader to receive the title of “Panth Rattan” as no Sikh leader turned up at his house to celebrate his 120th birth anniversary here today.

The house of Master Tara Singh at Ranjit Pura presented a deserted look throughout the day. Few of his family members performed a “sehaj path” to mark the occasion.

Mr Manbir Singh and Ms Jaspreet Kaur, grandson and grand ‘daughter-in-law of Master Tara Singh said the house used to be the hub of Akali activities till his death in 1967.

He was instrumental in the formation of the SAD the and SGPC in 1920 and 1925, respectively . However, Sikh leaders stopped visiting his house a few years after his death. They said Masterji shifted to this place immediately after the formation of the SAD. He was the first secretary of the SGPC and made the house his ‘makeshift office’ till 1925.

While the nation has recognised his services by adorning his portrait in Parliament’s Central Hall on August 21, 2003, the Sikh Panth had yet to recognise his services by raising a memorial.

When contacted SGPC chief Bibi Jagir Kaur said the family members who had taken a lot of “political mileage” from Masterji should take the initiative to raise the memorial.

Sikh circles say that Master Tara Singh did not belong to a particular group or confined to his family, it was the Sikh masses who had bestowed the title of Panth Rattan on him for his selfless services.

The sword that caught the attention of the world before Partition is gathering dust in his house.

Raising the slogan, of “Pakistan Murdabad” in front of the Punjab Assembly, in Lahore on March 4, 1947 by brandishing this black sword, earned him a lot of enemies. The fury of the Muslims against him was so intense that his house in his ancestral village, Harial, in Rawalpindi district (now in Pakistan) was burnt down and 59 of his relatives were hacked to death.

The sword and other personal belongings of Master Tara Singh have yet to find a proper place in a museum.

Ms Jaspreet Kaur said he was remembered for steering the Sikhs towards opting for India in 1947 and had campaigned for the state of Punjab in Independent India.

An almirah of Master Tara Singh remains locked most of the time. It contains several swords, including those gifted to him during functions along with ‘siropas.

His family members are planning to turn a portion of the house into a museum. 

Patiala, June 24
Punjab Chief Minister Amarinder Singh today categorically rejected the demand of Deputy Chief Minister Rajinder Kaur Bhattal for holding a meeting of Council of Ministers to review the security aspects in the state following the arrest of Jagtar Singh Hawara recently.

The Chief Minister also made it clear that there was no threat to the life of Ms Bhattal from any group of London-based youths as claimed by her in a letter written to the DGP, Punjab. Though intelligence agencies of the Punjab police had claimed that there was no threat to Ms Bhattal, he had asked the Intelligence Bureau (IB) to conduct an inquiry into it, he added.

“We will make arrangements in connection with the security of Ms Bhattal according to the report given by the IB,” said Capt Amarinder Singh while talking to mediapersons after unveiling the foundation stone of a dairy complex at a village on the outskirts of the city this evening. The dairy complex is being set up by the Municipal Corporation.

While claiming that no one would be allowed to disturb peace in Punjab and appreciating the role of the Punjab police, the Chief Minister said neither Punjab nor its residents had been facing any threat from any kind of terrorism. Any politician or any other person, who would indulge in militancy would be taken to task, he added.

Capt Amarinder Singh, who was accompanied by his Cabinet colleagues and media adviser, Mr Bharat Inder Singh Chahal, said he went to the Dixie Road gurdwara in Canada as Chief Minister of the Congress government of Punjab with the party’s secular agenda. He had done his job and informed the party high command about his achievements.

He declared that he would not stop going to gurdwaras merely because of the fact that photographs of Sant Jarnail Singh Bhindrawala and ‘khalistan zindabad’ slogans were displayed on their premises.

He said his visit to Canada had secured investment of about Rs 400 crore in Punjab so far and number of queries from entrepreneurs of that country were still pouring in.

Meanwhile, the Municipal Corporation authorities said around 410 dairies would be shifted to two dairy complexes and rest of the dairies dotting the city would be accommodated in a phased manner.

Chandigarh, June 24
Defending his recent visit to the controversial Dixie Road gurdwara in Canada, the Punjab Chief Minister, Capt Amarinder Singh, today said “I cannot read all banners or posters in a hall where I go to speak.” Moreover, the banner with the words ‘Khalistan zindabad’ on it was “behind me and I do not have eyes on my back”. He was speaking to mediapersons at Punjab Bhavan here.

Terming the controversy as ridiculous and unnecessary, the Chief Minister added that the oversight of missing out on the contents of the banner was a genuine mistake. “One normally does not read all posters and banners in any hall but the next time I will first look at the wall,” he said.

The Chief Minister admitted that he had been warned beforehand that people in the gurdwara comprised Sikhs with a “teekhi soch” (radical views). Asked why his entourage, comprising men from the intelligence besides ministers and officers, did not read the banner beforehand, the Chief Minister sidestepped the issue. He also blamed the media for making it into such a big issue.

It is a controversy created by the Shiromani Akali Dal and the BJP, he added.

Capt Amarinder Singh, while clarifying his position, said he had gone to the gurdwara as the Chief Minister belonging to a secular party with a nationalist agenda. He said even in Punjab, many gurdwaras had at one time carried objectionable posters and photographs. “Does this mean that I should not go there?” he asked. The Chief Minister said Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee President Jagir Kaur had announced the construction of a minar-e-sharif (monument) in memory of those killed during Operation Bluestar in the Golden Temple complex in 1984. “Now does it mean that I should stop visiting the Golden Temple if the memorial is built?” he asked.

He said he visited the Dixie Road gurdwara following requests from people there, including Mr Ujjal Dosanjh, Health Minister of Canada.

Dismissing apprehensions of the revival of terrorism in the state, Capt Amarinder Singh said he would not allow anybody to create trouble. This might include Mr Simranjit Singh Mann, Mr Parkash Singh Badal or Bibi Jagir Kaur. Any extremist element would face the maximum penalty, said the Chief Minister.

There was no regrouping of terrorists. There was just one gang which was trying to regroup and its members had already been nabbed. The two persons arrested in connection with the Delhi blasts recently had no ideological link with any terrorist group but had committed the act for money. Rising unemployment was the root cause.

He said the two arrests had led to many others, including that of Jagtar Singh Hawara of the Babbar Khalsa International.

Ludhiana, June 24
The secretary-general of the Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD), Capt Kanwaljeet Singh, today said that his party was not prepared to buy the argument of the Chief Minister, Capt Amarinder Singh, that he had not seen the inscription “Khalistan zindabad” behind the podium from where he spoke during his visit to Dixie Gurdwara in Canada.

Addressing a press conference here today on the sidelights of the 121st birth anniversary celebrations of Master Tara Singh, Capt Kanwaljeet Singh reiterated the stand of his party, seeking dismissal of the Chief Minister and registration of a case under sedition charges against him. He demanded that a high-level probe was needed to find out as to what transpired between the Chief Minister and the Khalistani supporters at Dixie gurdwara during his Canadian visit.

The SAD secretary-general said that while everybody knew that the CM was meddling too much in the religious affairs of the Sikhs, now he went a step ahead by flirting with the pro Khalistan forces. He alleged, this was the age-old practice of the Congress of interfering in the religious affairs of the Sikhs.

The Akali leader alleged that the Chief Minister was deliberately trying to strengthen the pro Khalistan elements in Punjab to create a fear psychosis among the minorities. He is trying to damage the social fabric by creating a wedge between the Hindus and the Sikhs, the Captain alleged.

Earlier, tributes were paid to Master Tara Singh on his 121st birth anniversary at a function organised by the Panth Rattan Sriman Master Tara Singh Yaadgari Committee at the GGN Khalsa College here today. The speakers recalled his sacrifices to safeguard the interests of the Sikhs.

The Deputy Speaker of the Lok Sabha, Mr Chiranjit Singh Atwal, said Master Tara Singh was a great visionary who could foresee things. He recalled his uncompromising stand on the issues related to the Sikhs.

Prominent among others present on the occasion were Bibi Kiranjot Kaur, the granddaughter of Master Tara Singh.

Chandigarh, June 24
The Punjab Government has issued orders to withdraw the current-duty charge the of post of Subdivisional Officer from 20 junior engineers with immediate effect. These 20 SDOs, holding current-duty charge, have been asked to work as junior engineers against their original posts.

Informed official sources confirmed today that the Principal Secretary of the Irrigation Department, Mr K.R. Lakhanpal, had issued a detailed order regarding the withdrawal of current-duty charge from the 20 SDOs. While three junior engineers were given current-duty charge as SDOs in the year 2000, the rest were given the charge next year.

A controversy had arisen in the Irrigation Department at that time on this issue. As this charge was given on the basis of the last five outstanding annual confidential reports( ACRs), the seniority criteria had become a major casualty.

It was alleged that certain junior engineers had managed “ outstanding reports” for getting the current-duty charge of the post of SDO. This matter is still being investigated by the Vigilance Bureau, Punjab, which had ordered a regular inquiry in this connection in 2002. The Irrigation Department authorities had expressed the opinion that such promotions should not have exceeded the 2 per cent quota of the posts of SDO. Moreover, those junior engineers who got outstanding reports by taking the plea that they risked their lives while protecting people during floods or other natural calamities should have been given appreciation letters by the defence or other authorities concerned.

Mr Lakhanpal has also directed the SDOs to report for duty to the Chief Engineer concerned for their further posting orders as junior engineers.

Justifying the withdrawal of current-duty charge, Mr Lakhanpal stated in his order that the government had notified the Punjab Irrigation Department (Group-A) Service Rules and had decided to fill the vacant posts of SDO on a regular basis from among the junior engineers by holding a meeting of the department promotion committee on the basis of the new rules.

The government had also issued fresh guidelines in April this year regarding the grant of current-duty charge.

The officials from whom current-duty charge has been withdrawn are Mr Arun Kumar Aggarwal, Mr Gurmit Singh, Mr Chetaan Singh, Mr Sukhraj Singh, Mr Amrik Singh, Mr Gurlal Singh, Mr S.S. Brar, Mr Vijay Kumar Bansal, Mr Harvinder Singh Randhawa, Mr Balwinder Singh, Mr Jagtar Singh, Mr Atamjit Singh, Mr Gurcharan Singh, Mr Navdeep Singh, Mr Tarjit Singh, Mr Resham Singh, Mr Rajesh Kumar, Mr K.K.Sharma, Mr Jaskiran Singh and Mr Kuldeep Singh.

Kapurthala, June 24
Barely the Balbir custodial death case had faded from the memories of residents when another incident pertaining to the death of a 23-year-old dalit, summoned for interrogation by the police, sparked off a row here today.

The agitated family members of deceased Ravi Pal and residents of Shtabgarh village pelted stones on the police while the latter retaliated by lathicharging and firing in the air. The residents alleged that the police had rounded him up in connection with the gruesome murder of a farm labourer early this month while he was returning home from Phillaur on Wednesday morning.

The angry mob had just started gathering near Sultanpur police station this morning with an aim at staging a dharna and lodge a protest. However, Gurmit Singh, SP (D), Mr Harpreet Mander, DSP (Sultanpur) and Mr Tarlochan Singh, SDM, reached the spot and tried to pacify the residents who then cremated the body of the youth at around 2 pm.

Crying inconsolably over the death of her son, Ms Gurmeet Kaur, mother, said her son was working with her uncle at Phillaur doing boring work for tubewells. “We received a message through sarpanch that he was called by the police for probe into the death of the 40-year old farm labourer. We called him up on Wednesday morning while he was in Phillaur and the said he would reach Lohian within an hour and somebody should be there to pick him up. But when his cousin had gone there to get him, he was nowhere to be seen,” she recalled.

The body of Ravi Pal was found in a Nakodar-Ludhiana bound train yesterday morning. The police took the body to the Phillaur railway station from where it was handed over to a Phillaur police station. A case was registered under section 174 of the CrPC and post-mortem was done at the Civil Hospital.

In its effort to identify the youth, the police searched the pockets of the deceased and found a mobile phone. The police called up an aunt of the boy who said the boy had been missing since the previous night. She reached the police station and identified him as Ravi Pal. His body was brought home last evening.

DSP (Sultanpur), said since the body of the youth did not bear any injury marks, it clearly revealed that he could have died due to a heart attack or by consuming some poisonous substance. He agreed that he had been summoned at least thrice in the case, but he said that he had not turned up. The DSP said since Ravi Pal’s family did not share cordial relations with farm owner Mr Nirmal Singh whose labourer had been done to death on June 6, he was being suspected by the police.

Denying having being rounded up by the police, the DSP said that Ravi Pal had been going from Lohian to Phillaur in the train yesterday morning when he probably felt sick and lay down on the berth. He became motionless when the passengers contacted the GRP and got him down at Phillaur. The DSP, however, was clueless as to why he did not meet his family in Lohian before going back to work. 

Amritsar, June 24
The Punjab State Social Welfare Board has voiced its concern over the phasing out of the welfare extension and demonstration projects in the border areas of the state.

The chairperson of the Punjab Advisory Board, Mrs Ratna, said during the annual meeting of the Central Social Welfare Board held in New Delhi, they had demanded the continuation of the projects.

She said the projects included providing training to women in craft centres and running ‘’balwaris’’ for children. The maternity services by trained midwives and other such projects had been running successfully.

The Central board had decided to close these projects with effect from April 1, but the state board had opposed the move and took up the issue at the annual meeting of the board held on June 20 in New Delhi. The state board contended that there was no justification in closing these centres and added that the employees who had been running these centres for the past three decades could not be retrenched at this stage.

To continue these projects, the Punjab Government had already made a budget proposal of Rs 79.41 lakh for the current year and had also released the first instalment of Rs 20 lakh. The chairperson of the state board had requested the Central Board to make budget provisions for the continuation of the integrated child development schemes.

She said the border areas had suffered not only due to Pakistani aggressions, but also during the militancy.

At present, nine such projects were being run in Amritsar, Ferozepore and Gurdaspur. The report submitted by Punjab stated that two projects at Ferozepore, Lopoke (Amritsar) and Pathankot in

Gurdaspur had already been discontinued.

She also took up the issue of parity in the monthly honorarium of chairpersons in the country from Rs 700 to Rs 15,000 per month as they enjoyed the status of a minister of state. She said at present, the chairperson was not even a member of the advisory board and they should be made head of the board.

She said the Central Board had been told about the problems faced by the state for creating mass awareness about female foeticide.

Bathinda/Moga, June 24
While a number of villages in Malwa are reeling under long power cuts, inadequate power supply to tubewells has forced farmers in Moga to take to streets.

According to sources, villages in Moga district are facing power cuts of as long as 13 hours, while the scene in the urban areas is no better with six or seven hours’ daily power cut. Farmers had staged a dharna in front of the Dharamkot power station continuously for four days recently. They also blocked traffic and held protest in the Kot Ise Khan and Fatehgarh Panjtoor areas.

Various Bharatiya Kisan Union factions are also on the warpath with the BKU Ekta holding a protest outside the PSEB XEN office in Moga yesterday and the BKU Punjab following it today. These unions were demanding 10-hour power supply to tubewells and 24-hour power supply to villages.

Sources said most of the transformers in the rural areas were overloaded.

The sources said tubewells were not even getting eight-hour power supply in a number of Malwa villages as promised by the state government. Power cuts had also taken a toll on water supply in the urban areas in Moga.

The sources said there had been no water supply in old Moga for four days recently and the water tankers were called in to provide water.

Residents of Muktsar also had a tough time in the past two days with unscheduled power cuts becoming the order of the day. Water supply had also been hit in areas like Gandhi Nagar, Adarsh Nagar, Goniana Road, and Tibbi Sahib Road. Vendors were selling water at a cost of Rs 2 per tin.

The PSEB Superintending Engineer, Mr B.D. Bansal, said the Nathpa Jhakri power plant was totally shut in the last couple of days and five units of Ropar Thermal Plant had also tripped, which led to more power cuts. He admitted that power supply to tubewells had to be curtailed to six hours.

In Bathinda, villages in Rampura Phul and Talwandi Sabo blocks were bearing the brunt of power crisis. In some villages of Rampura Phul, there had been no power and waters supply for four days.

Bathinda city is also facing five to six hours’ power cut daily that has made life miserable for people, especially since the last one week as temperature had soared to over 45 °C.

The scenario is no different in Faridkot and Mansa districts. A few villages in Mansa were getting as little as four-hour power supply. Due to lack of water supply villagers were forced to consume contaminated ground water.

Farmers of about six villages today protested outside the Phul grid alleging that three tubewells had got no power for the past 50 hours.

Power crisis has also hit villages in Ferozepore district. While the city was facing 5-6 hours’ power cut daily, tubewells were also not getting adequate power supply. Meanwhile, the PSEB SE, Mr H.S. Brar, said that they had collected Rs 9.5 lakh as fine from farmers who were caught running motors with unauthorised connections since the start of paddy season.

Chandigarh, June 24
After virtually paying through its nose to buy power from outside, the Punjab Government will now set up power plants with massive investments to make the state self-sufficient in power generation.

Presently, the state government is shelling out Rs 10 crore per day to buy power from outside sources.

The Punjab Chief Minister, Capt Amarinder Singh, said, “We have already spent Rs 486 crore in the last month and a half to buy power to meet our increased demand”.

The Chief Minister, while speaking to mediapersons, admitted that the power scenario in the state was grave.

Despite huge spending, no additional power was available on the grid leaving power cuts as the only answer.

There is expected to be no relief from the power cuts till the arrival of the monsoon season. In order to meet the increasing demand of the agricultural sector, power is being diverted from the domestic and industrial sectors.

Capt Amarinder Singh pointed out that even though the acreage under paddy cultivation had gone down this season still there was an excessive demand from the farming sector.

During the last season, about 5574 MW of power was being consumed per day which now stood at 5888 MW.

The Punjab State Electricity Board (PSEB) has been imposing four to six-hour-long power cuts daily on urban domestic feeders while single-phase power-feeders in the rural areas are being subjected to nine-hour-long cuts.

Likewise, 24-hour power supply too has been effected with six-hour-long cuts and the industrial feeders are being shut down for three hours daily.

If possible, the government might impose ban on the use of air conditioners right from the Chief Minister’s office downwards in order to save power, Capt Amarinder Singh added.

On the investment front, he said the Canadians wanted to set up a gas-based power plant at Doraha soon.

The Gas Authority of India Limited (GAIL) has said it would need time till 2010. Reliance too has shown great interest in setting up such a plant.

Abohar, June 24
The Rajasthan Police has withdrawn all check posts from the inter-state-border that linked Sriganganagar and Hanumangarh with this subdivision of Punjab. This raised many eyebrows as smuggling of narcotics from Rajasthan and Madhya Pradesh through this route has increased.

The Sriganganagar police too had recently foiled attempts to smuggle poppy husk from Nagaur town to Barnala and other areas of Punjab.

However, senior police officers at Sriganganagar said the decision was taken on complaints that policemen posted at these check posts were harassing vehicle owners for money. They had not been able to check narcotics smuggling. Sources said neither Punjab, nor the Rajasthan or Haryana Police was interested in checking smuggling of narcotics. The police had not been able to nab culprits during the last five years.

The sources said Punjab Police DGP B.S. Danewalia had presided a meeting of Inspector Generals and Border Range DIG officers at CIPHET here on December 31, 2002. It was resolved that coordination between police officers of the border districts would be increased to check the smuggling of narcotics.

The Rajasthan Police had handed over a list of 200 criminals who had been declared proclaimed offenders and had their origin in Punjab. Further lists were to be exchanged at meetings to be held quarterly on rotation basis. Only one meeting was held since then.

The Rajasthan police had chased criminals involved in some cases but could arrest them from different parts of Punjab thrice only. The Punjab Police had succeeded in nabbing a few persons under the NDPS Act but they were only couriers. Efforts to establish identity of big fish had not been made sincerely the sources said.

Though the district police had deployed some commandos on the Abohar-Sriganganagar road to assist the police in checking smuggling and robberies, the arrangement had not shown any results.

Ropar, June 24
Two children, including a five-year-old girl and seven-year-old boy, of Bilaspur got drowned in a small dam at Gawalithai village this evening. The two were taken to the BBMB hospital at Nangal at about 7 p.m. where they were declared brought dead.

The incident took place at about 5 p.m. when three children of a family went to a dam in their village to take bath. Minakshi and Akshey jumped into the dam and drowned. Thereafter their sister informed the family about the incident. It took more than one hour for the family to take them out.

COURTS

Remand of Hawara’s wife extended
Tribune News Service

Dhuri (Sangrur), June 24
The police remand of Balwinder Kaur, wife of Jagtar Singh Hawara, chief of Babbar Khalsa International (BKI) in India, was today extended till July 2 by a local court. The court also extended the police remand of Sukhdev Singh, a granthi of Dohla village, near Dhuri, who reportedly got performed the marriage of Balwinder Kaur with Hawara as a mediator; Amarjit Singh, alias Kala, a resident of Kalka, and Pargat Singh, alias Tharmat, a resident of Sujadpur, till July 2. Earlier on June 20, all of them had been remanded in police custody by the court till today.

They were arrested on June 19 in connection with a case registered against them under Sections 121,121-A, 122, 123, 124-A, 153-A, 212 and 216 of the IPC and Sections 3/4/5 of the Explosives Substances Act, 1908, and 25,54,59 of the Arms Act at the local police station. The police had reportedly seized a huge quantity of explosives, including about 18 kg of RDX and other ammunition from them.

Balwinder Kaur, Sukhdev Singh, Amarjit Singh and Pargat Singh were today produced in the court of Duty Magistrate Sanjiv Joshi here by the CIA Staff.

ADMINISTRATION

DCs to countersign clearance certificates
Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, June 24
The Punjab Government has asked all deputy commissioners in the state to countersign police clearance certificates (PCCs) issued by the police. This will help in avoiding inconvenience to those seeking visa or immigration.

Earlier, PCCs used to be issued only from the regional passport offices or the Indian missions abroad. These instructions were issued in February and had resulted in a huge backlog of cases, leading to harassment of people.

Now the deputy commissioners have been empowered to countersign the PCC and send it to the Department of NRI Affairs in Punjab for attestation. From there it will be submitted to the Union Ministry of External Affairs.

Jalandhar, June 24
Tension gripped Kot Sadique village near here today after two persons died after being allegedly attacked by a group of youths of the same village led by Lekhraj Lekhu and his brother Sarbjit Sabi.

Meanwhile, sensing the tense situation in the village that was virtually converted into a police cantonment, the Jalandhar police had arrested the accused Lekhraj and Sarbjit. Two daggers, which were allegedly used in the crime that took place on late Thursday night, had also been seized by the police.

A heavy police deployment was made in the village after the crime, which was suspected to be the result of illicit relationship of Lekhu with an acquaintance of one of the deceased Dharamvir Pappi of same village and the latter’s objections to it.

The incident took place when Pappi tried to dissuade Lekhu from going ahead with the relationship as the two met on Thursday night. Enraged over the repeated objections, Lekhu attacked Pappi with the help of his brother Sabi and other cousins. Pappi and his cousin Vinod Kumar Rinku were attacked with knives and daggers by the accused, who later fled when relatives of Pappi and Rinku reached the spot.

In a complaint to the police, Vipan Kumar, a brother of Pappi, alleged that Lekhu had been trying to harm Pappi for long and even on that day it was Lekhu who had started abusing first.

Pappi died immediately after the attack while Rinku, who was seriously injured in the attack, succumbed to his injuries at the Civil Hospital. The bodies of the victims were cremated this afternoon amid tight security.

A large number of police officials, led by SP (Operation) Opinderjit Singh Ghumman, SP (city) Pawan Rai and DSP Rajinder Singh, were camping the village to prevent any untoward incident.

Similarly, security was also tightened at the Civil Hospital on the instructions of SSP Ishwar Singh as a large number of relatives of the deceased had decended there.

A case under Sections 302 and 307 of the IPC had been registered at Sadar police station.

Kapurthala, June 24
A new born deformed baby boy was found abandoned in Laxmi Colony close to Amritsar Road here early this morning.

The boy was found by Mr Sunil Dutt, a resident of Malkana Colony, lying by the side of the road while he was out on his morning walk. The baby was crying and ants walked all over his body.

Mr Dutt took him home and gave the baby a bath. It was then that he saw that the baby had six fingers and six toes. He then took him to the Civil Hospital and informed the police about the incident.

ASI Jagjit Singh Bajwa of City police station said that the baby was being given care by Mr Madan Lal Ghai, president of Malkana Colony, till all legal formalities were completed.

Sangrur, June 24
Protesting against the alleged “murderous attack” on the Khanauri Nagar Panchayat chief, Mr Girdhari Lal Garg, by an octroi contractor and his accomplice last night at Khanauri village, about 60 km from here, residents today blocked the Sangrur-Delhi road at Khanauri for more than two hours and observed a bandh in the city. The residents lifted the blockade and dharna when senior officers, including the SDM, SP and DSP of the area assured the protesters that the alleged accused had been arrested.

Talking to The Tribune on the phone today, Mr Garg said Mr Gurdial Singh, octroi contractor of the Nagar Panchayat, along with his accomplice Meehan Singh, made a “murderous attack” with an axe on him when he had been sitting in his shop last night. He said Mr Gurdial Singh was of the view that the octroi contract for the next year had been given to Mangal Singh by the Local Bodies authorities with his recommendation. Though it was not true, Gurdial Singh had a grudge against him on this account, he added.

Mr Harvinder Singh, SHO of the Khanauri police station, said Gurdial Singh and Meehan Singh had been arrested by the police. A case had been registered against them under Sections 307 (attempt to murder), 452, 506 and 34 of the IPC and 25, 27, 54 and 59 of the Arms Act. He said both would be produced in the court tomorrow.

Abohar, June 24
Twelve persons, including an Assistant Sub-Inspector of the Punjab Police, were injured as employees of a private transport company clashed with supporters of three-wheeler owners here today.

According to available information, the clash took place at the bus stop of Kallarkhera village, located on the Sriganganagar-Abohar road this morning. ASI Sanjiv Kumar was among those who received injuries. Seven persons were admitted to the Civil Hospital here, while the others taken to Sriganganagar hospital.

Shiv Kumar, Anil Kumar and Baldev Singh, employees of the transport company, told the police at the Civil Hospital that they were attacked by about 40 persons with lathis, etc. as their bus reached Kallarkhera village at 8.30 a.m. as per schedule. There had been some dispute with tempo operators over illegal transportation of passengers yesterday but the matter was resolved later. So they had no apprehension of such trouble. Those who attacked the staff included tempo operators and their supporters. SHO Darshan Singh of Khuyiansarwer police station rushed in with force and controlled the situation.

Refuting this version, Sushil Kumar, Harchand, Kailash and Ashok Kumar, lying on the same bed in the emergency ward of the hospital, alleged that the staff of the transport company stormed Kallarkhera bus stop using three cars and two buses with policemen sitting inside. They started beating those who had assembled there. The injured claimed they had no connection with the tempo operators but asserted that people were not satisfied with the private bus operators who carried 50 per cent extra passengers inside the buses and forced others to travel on the roof that could lead to accident. Moreover, travelling by overcrowded buses in the scorching summer was virtually impossible. So people preferred to travel by three-wheelers, they added.

Regarding yesterday’s incident, eyewitnesses said a tempo was used to take a sick person to Sriganganagar which was closer to Kallarkhera than Abohar, but the bus staff objected to this.

Today’s clash took place in the presence of the police but it watched like silent spectators and supported the transporters who had taken the law into their hands.