E-Paper
Advocates’ protest leaves Ludhiana city choked
’ASSAULT ON LAWYER’ Commuters stranded for 6 hrs, diversions add to woes
Vehicular traffic from all corners of the city was choked for around six hours as hundreds of advocates blocked the Ferozpur Road opposite the Mini Secretariat here on Thursday. The protestors demanded the dismissal of special task force (STP) in-charge inspector Harbans Singh for allegedly assaulting an advocate three days ago.
The protest began at 11am as the advocates also closed the gates of the mini-secretariat causing major inconvenience to the visitors.
The traffic police put major diversions at ESIC Hospital crossing, Dugri Road, Bharat Nagar Chowk, Bhai Bala Chowk, Sunet village crossing, Rajguru Nagar intersection point on Ferozepur Road and Phulewal Chowk. Forced to take inner roads, commuters remained stranded in long traffic jams, leaving the city chock-a-block.
Traffic suffered on the Pakhowal Road, Kochar Market Road, Gurdev Nagar Road, Ghumar Mandi Road, Sham Singh Road, Mall Road, Malhar Road and the Jagraon bridge.
“I had to go to the railway station to pick my relative but got stuck as I took the Ghumar Mandi road. The police and the administration should not let the public suffer,” said Ankur Tandon, a city resident.
The advocates raised slogans against the police department and STF in-charge demanding his immediate dismissal. They also threatened to hold a similar protest on Friday.
“The police administration should take action against officials who are misusing their position to harass people,” said advocate Parupkar Singh Ghuman, former president of the District Bar Association (DBA), Ludhiana.
Criticising the authorities, advocate Varun Gupta, who had accused the STF in-charge of assault, said, “We had already approached the deputy commissioner and police commissioner. We will create such circumstances that the officials will come to us.”
Around 12.45pm, deputy commissioner of police (DCP) Ashwani Kapoor tried pacifying the protesters, but they did not relent.
“The DCP told us that he had no power to register an FIR against the STF in-charge as the incident did not occur in their jurisdiction. We will continue our strike till strict action is taken against Harbans Singh,” said Gupta.
Some advocates also accused the STF in-charge of booking people in false cases.
“The authorities have assured us of inquiry, but it is a clear case of assault where immediate arrest is required,” said advocate Narinder Adya.
Suman, a 50-year-old woman from Pakhowal, whose son was arrested in a drug case also joined the protesting advocates and accused the STF in-charge of harassment.
“Our life has been miserable for the past six months since the police arrested my son in the false case. My husband is in the hospital and I have no one for support. I have been requested Harbans Singh several times to release my son, but he is paying no heed to my plight,” said Suman.
The protest was finally lifted around 5pm.
In a resolution passed on Thursday, the Punjab and Haryana High Court Bar Association strongly condemned the attack on the advocate. Expressing solidarity with the protesting lawyers, the association has demanded strict action against the erring officials.
Police commissioner Rakesh Agrawal said the matter had been forwarded to the Khanna police as the alleged assault took place in the latter’s jurisdiction.
Khanna senior superintendent of police (SSP) Harpreet Singh said he had received the complaint and marked an inquiry into the matter.
AT THE HEART OF THE MATTER
The protesters accused STF in-charge Harbans Singh of assaulting an advocate, Varun Gupta, while threatening him to implicate in a drugs case near Manji Sahib Gurdwara on February 25. Gupta alleged that he, his father and driver were returning to Ludhiana after dropping his elder brother at the Delhi airport when some miscreants in a white Hyundai i-20 car waylaid their car.
“We stopped at a dhaba and called 112 police helpline. A few minutes later, STF in-charge Harbans Singh arrived in a vehicle and started thrashing me in front of my paralytic father, threatening me to withdraw the complaint, which I did. We saw the white Hyundai i-20 near the vehicle of the police party. After returning home, I narrated the incident to my colleagues and decided to lodge a formal complaint,” Gupta said.
Inspector Harbans Singh’s phone was switched off. He had earlier denied the allegations.
DC MARKS PROBE
Deputy commissioner Pradeep Kumar Agrawal said that a magisterial inquiry has been marked into the incident of alleged assault on the advocate. “The inquiry has been entrusted to Payal sub-divisional magistrate Sagar Setia.
