Ludhiana: Ex-BJP district prez Bansal, 8 others booked for violence

The other accused have been identified as Bira Lal, Naresh Kumar, Sikander, Kailash Chand, Raj Kumar Mintu, Jaspal Ladi and comrade Joginderpal

Nine days after a clash between two groups in a temple in Kidwai Nagar, the Division number 2 police on Tuesday lodged an FIR against Parveen Bansal, former district president of Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), his son and seven aides in connection with the case.

A case under sections 323, 341, 506, 295, 354, 380, 148 and 149 of the IPC has been lodged against the accused (iStock)

The other accused have been identified as Bira Lal, Naresh Kumar, Sikander, Kailash Chand, Raj Kumar Mintu, Jaspal Ladi and comrade Joginderpal. The FIR has been lodged following the statement of Rajesh Kumar, son of former priest of the temple Bharat Singh.

The complainant alleged that on June 4, Bansal and his aides barged in the temple and assaulted them with sticks and iron rods. The accused had also disrupted prayers. He also alleged that Bansal and his aides had also misbehaved and manhandled women in temple premises and indulged in violence.

Assistant commissioner of police (ACP) Rajesh Sharma said that a case under sections 323, 341, 506, 295, 354, 380, 148 and 149 of the IPC has been lodged against the accused at police station Division number 2. The police are investigating the complaint filed by Bansal.

Both groups had indulged in a violent scuffle on June 4. The videos of the clash went viral on social networking sites in which both groups were purportedly seen assaulting each other. Bansal was captured thrashing members of rival groups with a stick.

Refuting the allegations, Bansal stated that he along with his supporters had gone to the temple to perform a ‘havan’. He further alleged that after the death of the temple’s caretaker-cum-priest, his son and other family members had encroached on the temple property. He claimed that when he reached there, the priest’s family members and their supporters openly attacked him.

Bansal, who is BJP’s former Ludhiana district president, had unsuccessfully contested assembly elections in 2022 from Ludhiana north constituency.