Tazpur residents demand probe into police ‘assault’ on peaceful protesters

Residents of Tazpur and surrounding villages have demanded a probe into the alleged police ‘assault’ on peacefully protesting supporters of candidates for election to the Tazpur Multipurpose Agricultural Cooperative Society Limited late on Thursday.

The protesters were demanding action against officials of the Cooperative Department who had allegedly declared candidates supported by Aam Aadmi Party winners by cancelling nomination papers of all 16 candidates of the Congress.

The protesters alleged that those injured in the ‘cane-charge’ by the police were not allowed to avail of medical treatment at the civil hospitals in Raikot and Pakhowal.

Raikot SDM Simardeep Singh on the other hand claimed that the police had to resort to mild cane-charge to disperse illegal gatherings of protesters who had blocked the entry to the premises where polling staff had been detained illegally by them. Singh further said the police had also registered a case against a group of protesters led by sarpanch Hardev Kaur.

Perusal of the FIR revealed that Hardev Kaur, Gurjinder Singh, Sukhwinder Singh, Hardeep Singh, Gurjant Singh and Baljit Singh along with 30-35 unknown persons had been booked for allegedly detaining the polling staff by locking the premises of the cooperative society and attacking the police party that came to rescue the government personnel deployed on election duty, late on Thursday.

Congress activists led by Sarpanch Hardev Kaur alleged that the returning officer Surinder Singh had allegedly cancelled nomination papers of all 16 candidates to ‘appease’ AAP legislator Hakam Singh by declaring a panel of six AAP-supported candidates winners on Thursday. She alleged that Singh had been appointed returning officer in violation of rules of the Cooperative Department. Kaur alleged that the police mercilessly beat up peacefully protesting residents, including women.

Meanwhile, Fatehgarh Sahib MP Dr Amar Singh Boparai said he had taken up the issue with senior functionaries in Ludhiana district administration and Cooperative Department in this regard.

“Having learnt about the sequence of events leading to merciless beating up of peacefully protesting residents and subsequent denial of medical treatment, I have urged senior functionaries in the administration to get the matter probed and announce fresh election process,” said Boparai, threatening to launch agitation in case justice was denied.

Meanwhile, returning officer Surinder Singh has issued a list of eight candidates who were declared elected from zones 1 and 2 of the society. Sukhwinder Singh, Gurmit Kaur, Sarabjit Singh, Kirpal Singh, Bhupinder Singh and Gurmit Singh were elected from zone 1, Tazpur, while Jagminder Pal Singh and Gurwinder Singh were declared elected from zone 2, Buraj Hakiman.