Tiff over land ownership: Security up in Talwandi Sabo

The Bathinda district administration had to deploy an additional police force at Talwandi Sabo on Tuesday after two groups of the Sikh community gathered over an issue of taking possession of 15-kanal land

The Bathinda district administration had to deploy an additional police force at Talwandi Sabo on Tuesday after two groups of the Sikh community gathered over an issue of taking possession of 15-kanal land.

The Bathinda district administration had to deploy an additional police force at Talwandi Sabo on Tuesday after two groups of the Sikh community gathered over an issue of taking possession of 15-kanal land.

Former chief minister Charanjit Singh Channi and a few other Congress leaders reached Talwandi Sabo in support of Gurdwara Bunga Nanaksar, a shrine of the Ramdasia community. Channi alleged that a few days ago, people having allegiance to the Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee (SGPC) manhandled members of the Ramdasia community while taking forcible possession of the land.

Denying the charges, SGPC member Mohan Singh Bangi said the SGPC was the real owner of the land and the court had settled the dispute in their favour. “Few people with political interest are trying to give a wrong picture of the issue,” he said.

Bathinda deputy commissioner (DC) Showkat Ahmad Parray told reporters that in 2018, the Punjab and Haryana high court had passed an order in favour of the SGPC. The district administration has also issued a possession warrant of the land in favour of the SGPC, but it was yet to be executed, he added.

“Members of both the groups were invited for a meeting on Tuesday for an amicable solution. Another round of meeting will be held again on Wednesday,” said the said DC.