E-Paper
Sand miners assault forest guard, field staff in Mohali’s Mullanpur
Tractor owner, his son and their accomplices assault forest dept staff after being caught transporting illegally mined sand in the middle of the night
Despite heavy security arrangement for Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit to Mullanpur on Wednesday afternoon, sand miners assaulted a forest guard and field staff who caught them transporting illegally mined sand in a tractor at Perch village in Mullanpur on the intervening night between Tuesday and Wednesday.
The forest department field staff, Nirmal Singh, suffered serious injuries on the face, back, arms and hands in the attack, while the forest guard, Vipandeep Kaur, was manhandled and subjected to abuses.
Police said the accused were identified as Sucha Singh, his son Aman and his friend Sukhwinder, who were accompanied by some unidentified men.
In the complaint to the police, the forest range officer stated that forest guard Vipandeep Kaur, along with field staff Nirmal Singh and Ramesh, was on patrolling duty in Perch village on Tuesday night.
There, the team spotted a tractor trolley loaded with illegally mined sand and intercepted it.
Within minutes, tractor’s owner Sucha Singh, along with his son Aman, his friend Sukhwinder and some more men, reached the spot.
When the forest guard told them that the tractor trolley will be impounded, they attacked the field staff, injuring them seriously. They also manhandled the female forest guard and hurled abuses, before fleeing the scene with the tractor trolley, the complaint stated.
Nirmal, who suffered the most injuries, was admitted to the civil hospital in Kharar.
Deputy superintendent of police Dharmvir Singh said they had booked the accused under Sections 379 (theft), 332 (voluntarily causing hurt to deter public servant from his duty), 506 (criminal intimidation), 353 (assault or criminal force to deter public servant from discharge of his duty), 186 (obstructing public servant in discharge of public functions), 34 (acts done in furtherance of common intention) of the Indian Penal Code, and relevant sections of the Mines and Minerals (Development and Regulation) Act and Indian Forest Act.
“Further investigation is underway and the accused will be arrested soon,” he said.
