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Hindu organisations lay siege to Jagraon Bridge, Ludhiana
Members of several Hindu outfits laid siege to the Jagraon Bridge, Ludhiana for at least two hours on Sunday, and gave a 10-day ultimatum to the police, and Punjab government to arrest the culprits in cases of cow slaughter and temple vandalism.
Alleging police inaction in cases of cow slaughter and temple vandalism across the state, members of several Hindu outfits laid siege to the Jagraon Bridge for at least two hours on Sunday.
The protesters, who laid cots on the bridge, gave a 10-day ultimatum to the police, and Punjab government to arrest the culprits, and said that a rath yatra would be held across the state after the stipulated time.
They also questioned the chief minister’s apathy towards the issue, which was of great significance to the Hindu community.
Commuters a harried lot
Meanwhile, commuters were a harried lot, and the police had to divert the traffic to other roads to avoid snarls.
A Hindu panchayat was also held on Jagraon Bridge to chalk out future plans. Punjab Shiv Sena chief Rajiv Tandon said that the culprits wanted to disturb the law and order in Punjab by killing cows and damaging temples.
Mahant Narayan Das Puri said several places of religious significance to the Hindus had been attacked. “On July 9, the Shivling in Sarond village of Malerkotla was damaged, while on June 21, idols of Hindu Gods had been damaged in Kalodi village on the Sangrur-Patiala Road. In November and December remains of bovines were found in Malerkotla and Ludhiana, and on December 7 Hindu religious books were desecrated.”
Question political leaders’ silence
Puri also condemned the leaders’ silence on the matter. “The Hindus will remember this , while casting their votes in the assembly elections,” he added.
Among those who attended the protest were Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader Pushpinder Singhal, Jeevan Gupta, Gurdev Debi,Vikram Sidhu, Congress district president Ashwani Sharma, Punjab Lok Congress district president Jagmohan Sharma, SAD leader RD Sharma and Aam Aadmi Party leader Madan Lal Bagga.
