E-Paper
Dera Baba Nanak bypoll: DSP transferred on EC orders
Gurdaspur MP and former deputy CM Sukhjinder Singh Randhawa, whose wife Jatinder Kaur is the Congress candidate, had complained that DSP Jasbir Singh was hand in glove with gangster Jaggu Bhagwanpuria, who was threatening voters.
Dera Baba Nanak deputy superintendent of police Jasbir Singh was on Tuesday transferred by the Punjab Police on the directions of the Election Commission.
The transfer follows the complaint of Gurdaspur MP and former deputy chief minister Sukhjinder Singh Randhawa. Randhawa’s wife Jatinder Kaur is contesting the Dera Baba Nanak assembly bypoll and her fight is against AAP’s Gurdeep Singh Randhawa and BJP’s Ravikaran Singh Kahlon.
In an order to the chief electoral officer of Punjab, the ECI authorities asked him to relieve Jasbir Singh from his duties and sought a panel of suitable officers for the post of DSP. Following this, the Punjab DGP transferred Jasbir Singh to the Punjab Armed Police (PAP) headquarters.
Sukhjinder Randhawa had recently complained that Jasbir Singh was hand in glove with gangster Jaggu Bhagwanpuria and added that he should be held responsible if any harm was done to him or his loyalists by supporters of the gangster.
Earlier, Sukhjinder Randhawa had alleged that the gangster was threatening sarpanches and leaders who had substantial vote banks through video calls while being jailed in Haryana. He had subsequently written to the Election Commission (EC) and asked election observer Anburajan KNN to take cognisance.
Randhawa lodged a complaint at the Kotli Surat Malhi police station, after which the SHO concerned deputed a junior officer to deal with the situation. In his complaint to the SHO, the MP highlighted an incident in which he called up the DIG (Border) Satinder Singh and Batala SSP Suhail Qasim Mir to tell them that Bhagwanpuria’s mother was forcing Congress-affiliated sarpanches to vote for the AAP candidate.
“DSP Jasbir Singh was asked by his senior officers to visit the site where Bhagwanpuria’s mother was roaming and report the matter to them. However, he did not perform his duty following which my complaint was given a quiet burial,” Randhawa had said.
The Election Commission asked Gurdaspur deputy commissioner Uma Shanker Gurpta to send a report after probing the allegations. The DC sent a report to the EC stating that no proof has emerged that the gangster is threatening voters.
On the EC action against the DSP, Randhawa said, “I’m thankful to the EC that took this action after conducting an inquiry on its own. What I stated in the complaint has been endorsed by the EC. Voters are being threatened in this election with involvement of police.”
