Punjab: Petrol bomb thrown at Hindu leader’s Ludhiana house

Hindu outfits stage protest. Two bikers wearing helmets have been captured in CCTV cameras.According to Shiv Sena (Bharatvanshi) president Yogesh Bakshi, he has received threats from unknown numbers.

Two unidentified bike-borne assailants allegedly threw a petrol bomb at the house of Shiv Sena (Bharatvanshi) president Yogesh Bakshi late on Wednesday evening, officials aware of the matter said. The petrol bomb hit a power supply cable outside the house in New Chandar Nagar and fell on Bakshi’s car parked in the street that caught fire. The assailants escaped immediately after throwing the bomb. Bakshi was home and having dinner at the time of the incident.

Leaders of several Hindu outfits during a brief protest after a petrol bomb was hurled at the house of Shiv Sena (Bharatvanshi) president Yogesh Bakshi in Ludhiana on Thursday. (Manish/HT)

Bakshi and his neighbours doused the flames and then alerted the Haibowal police. The assailants were captured in the closed-circuit television (CCTV) cameras installed outside the house. Bakshi, who has police security cover, said he had been receiving threats for a long time. Two security personnel were inside the house at the time of the incident.

He said he was having dinner at around 9.45 pm on Wednesday when the neighbours informed him that his car had been caught in flames. He said he assumed that it was due to spark in the power supply cables, but upon scanning the CCTV footage, he noticed the two assailants who were wearing helmets.

On Thursday, members of multiple Hindu outfits, including Shiv Sena (Punjab) leader Sandeep Thapar, gathered at Bakshi’s house and staged a protest for some time. They alleged that the police were not serious about the security of Hindu leaders. Haibowal station-house officer (SHO) inspector Amritpal Singh said the police were scanning the CCTV footage to identify the assailants. The process is on to register a case, he said.

Bakshi alleged that he has received threats from unknown numbers. He filed a complaint against an unidentified accused at the Haibowal police station in November 2023. He added that on April 25, two accused assaulted his brother Jatinder Bakshi in Chaura Bazar and fled. The Division Number 1 police had registered a case against the unidentified accused but failed to trace them.

On August 5, three nihangs attacked Shiv Sena (Punjab) leader Sandeep Thapar outside the civil hospital. The police have made three arrests in the case so far and one accused is on the run.