Ajnala, September 9
Various organisations associated with the State Agriculture Department and farmers’ union today organised a rally in protest against the manhandling of agriculture officials by an unauthorised pesticide dealer on September 4.

The protesters submitted a memorandum to the SDM after holding protest rallies in various localities of this border town. Addressing the protesters, Dr Gurdev Singh Gill, Joint Director, Agriculture Department, announced that the department would not send the raiding parties to detect the adulterated or fake pesticides in the state till the state government provided adequate security to the raiding teams.

He said they would continue to hold protest rallies in the town till sections 382 and 452 of the IPC were not included in the FIR registered against the unauthorised pesticide dealer, Varinder Sareen, alias Kale Shah, and his two sons Subash Sareen and Amit Sareen and several other persons for assaulting farm officials.

Speaking on the occasion, Dr Satnam Singh Ajnala, state president of the Jamhoori Kisan Union, said if the government wanted to save the agriculture and farmers in the state it should ensure the safety of the employees of the Agriculture Department who were working hard to expose the bogus pesticides dealers in the state. He urged the farmers to boycott those dealers who were selling low-quality pesticides. Among those who addressed the rally included Deputy Director Balkar Singh Malli, president of the Plant Director Services Association Avtar Singh Hothi, Rajinder Pal Singh Aulakh and leaders of the Jamhoori Kisan Union.

Jalandhar, September 9
Grabbing a loaf of dry bread in one hand while sucking on his little thumb, four -year-old Mohammad Rafi is the youngest of the eight siblings who have been running from pillar to post, for the past one week, to seek help in getting their mother rescued from their cruel father.

Belonging to a family of nomads (Muslim Gujjar), the boys Ramzan Ali, Zamal Ali, Barri, Gayia, Maandin, Sharif Ali, Salamdin and the little Rafi, have been fighting to free their mother Shaqina Begum who they say is in the ‘captivity’ of their father Lal Hussain.

Denied help by SHO Nakodar, the brothers were forced to knock at the doors of the district police chief here today as the Deputy Superintendent of police, Phillaur, paid no heed to their woes.

They had been to the office of the SSP, Jalandhar, for lodging a complaint against their father.

The boys revealed that their father Lal Hussian shunted them and their mother out from the hutment located in Bule Pind following a scuffle almost a year ago.

Shaqina, along with her eight sons, started living in Thabulkey village and reared 16 buffalos to sustain her family.

Ramzan Ali and Zamal Ali alleged that their father was a bad man and used to beat their mother almost daily.

The children claimed that last Thursday when their mother was going to Ludhiana with Gayia, Lal Hussian along with his brother and relatives, abducted them from Phagwara and took them to Bule Pind.

His men also took away their 16 buffalos and other household items in two trucks, he recalled.

Gayia disclosed that Lal Hussian detained them in illegal confinement and gave them a sound beating. He however, managed to escape from the captivity and rejoined his brothers.

The boys then brought the issue to the notice of the village sarpanch Harbhajan Singh who subsequently informed Tersem Peter, president of the Pendu Mazdoor Union, Punjab. “Peter revealed that they were forced to knock the doors of the SSP, as all efforts to nab the suspects, including Lal Hussian, proved futile. The cops at the lower level were hands in glove with Lal Hussian and his men, he alleged.

When contacted, SSP R. K. Jaiswal said he had asked the SHO concerned to verify the facts and submit a report in this context to him soon.

Hoshiarpur, September 9
Former ministers of Punjab and senior state Congress leaders Romesh Chander Dogra and Naresh Thakur and PPCC Secretary Jasbir Singh Pal reacted sharply to the 17.5 per cent hike in domestic and 9.5 per cent in industrial power tariff from April 1, 2009.

In separate press statements here today, they said the people of Punjab were already facing more than eight-hour power cuts daily, causing heavy financial loss to the industry as a result of which many of the units had either been closed down or were on the verge of closure. After their closure, thousands of labourers had become jobless.

Instead of taking appropriate steps to check the power crisis to bring the dying industry back on the right track, the government had tried to recover the losses to the Punjab State Electricity Board (PSEB), caused due to subsidy given to farmers or due to the PSEB’s wrong policies, from the general public.

By providing free electricity to BPL families and to tubewells, the SAD-BJP government had tried to strengthen their vote bank of Dalits and farmers at the cost of the general public, they alleged.

The government had not even taken any steps to bring down the skyrocketing prices of essential commodities whereas other state governments had already started campaign against hoarders, resulting in an decrease in the rates of edible items to some extent.

They warned Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal that if his government failed in rolling back the increased power tariff and action against hoarders was not initiated, the Congress would start a statewide agitation. Consumer Awareness Welfare Association, Punjab, president Dharambir Kapur condemned the uncalled for increase in the domestic and industrial power tariff.

Jalandhar, September 9
A two-day grand fair was organised at Asal Uttar Stadium by Khemkaran Brigade under the aegis of Golden Arrow Division in the memory of Company Quarter Master Havildar (CQMH) Abdul Hamid (Param Vir Chakra) who attained martyrdom fighting the enemy in the Khemkaran sector on September 9, 1965, during the Indo-Pak conflict.

The fair concluded with a memorial service at the Abdul Hamid Memorial. A wreath-laying ceremony was conducted with a guard of honour at the resting place of the martyr. The buglers sounded the “last post” and observed a two-minute silence in his memory.

CQMH Abdul Hamid of the fourth battalion of the Grenadiers Regiment was deployed at Asal Uttar as the commander of a recoilless gun detachment on September 8 and 9, 1965, when the Pakistan forces launched a major offensive, led by a regiment of Patton tanks.

Through under intense artillery shelling and tank fire, Hamid moved from one firing position to another and pulverised three tanks of the enemy.

However, he was fatally wounded by an enemy shell while aggressively engaging the forth tank.

CQMH Abdul Hamid’s bellicose act of bravery in the face of the enemy was a shining example of valour and high traditions of the Indian Army. For this unparallelled courageous act, CQMH Abdul Hamid was awarded the Param Vir Chakra posthumously. He also earned for his battalion the Battle Honour Asal Uttar.

The 44th martyr anniversary of CQMH Abdul Hamid was held at his memorial near Asal Uttar village on September 9.

Gurdaspur, September 9
Members of the District Bar Association (DBA), led by its president Baltej Singh Saroa, today observed strike to lodge their protest against the hike made in the court fee by the authorities concerned.

Saroa said in certain categories, the authorities concerned had made a hike of 50 times of the prevailing court fee and hence had put unnecessary and unjust burden on the poor litigants.

He said the DBA had demanded that the hike must be withdrawn immediately so that justice could be given to the litigants at a cheaper cost.

Nawanshahr: Members of the District Bar Association (DBA) today decided to abstain from court work for two days to protest against the recent hike in court fee.

Terming the hike as exorbitant, the District Bar Association took out a protest march from the judicial court complex to the district administrative complex and submitted a memorandum to the Deputy Commissioner.

“The hike in court fee is quite contrary to the claims of the state government to provide cheap and speedy justice to the people,” alleged G.S. Kahlon, vice-president of the association, in a press note here on Wednesday.

Hoshiarpur: Members of the Bar Associations of Hoshiarpur, Garhshankar and Dasuya today observed a complete strike in protest against the enforcement of the Court Fee (Punjab Amendment) Act, 2009, on account of which the court fee on various works had been enhanced by up to 500 times.

In a press statement, District Bar Association president R.P. Dhir said with the enforcement of the Court Fee Act, justice would become costlier. It would hamper the government policy regarding cheap and early justice to litigants.

He urged the Chief Justice of the Punjab and Haryana High Court and the Chief Minister not to implement the act in the best interests of the poor people.

He warned that in case the decision was not taken back, the lawyers of Punjab would go on an indefinite strike. A meeting of state lawyers would be called to discuss the issue very shortly.

Jalandhar, September 9
Yet another resident of Bhargav Camp was hacked to death in a clash between two groups allegedly involved in illicit liquor trade in the locality.

Surinder Kumar, alias Shishu, was hacked to death by Chhindu and his men following a dispute over money late last night.

According to police sources, Chhindu of the same locality called Shishu from his house to pay him his balance money. The duo had an argument over the money and entered into a scuffle.

While they were fighting, Chhindu’s men attacked Shishu leaving him critically injured. Hearing the noise, residents rushed to the spot and rushed the injured to a local hospital where he breathed his last.

The police reached the spot but failed to pick out eyewitnesses of the incident.

The police later booked Chhindu and his five accomplices in a case of murder on the complaint of victim’s brother Rakesh Kumar.

The body was cremated after postmortem examinations at the local civil hospital this morning.

Cases under section 302 of the IPC have been registered against Chhindu and his accomplices at police station Division no. 6. The suspects are absconding. The SHO said raids are being conducted at suspected hideouts of the assailants.