E-Paper
Week after mob threatens NHAI officials in Ludhiana, main accused still at large
Blurb: Four other accused have been nabbed while 13 others have been identified in the case, say police
A week after National Highway Authorities of India (NHAI) officials alleged that they were threatened by a group posing as farmer union members and gangster-turned-activist Lakha Sidhana’s supporters, police have nabbed four suspects but the two main accused continue to remain at large.
The FIR was registered on August 6 against Sandeep Sharma and Manish Godara of Balaji Trading Company, and other unidentified persons on a complaint by Barjesh Kumar, AGM of MKC Infrastructure Limited.
Kumar revealed that they had awarded the work of loading, transporting, unloading, grading, rolling, watering and compaction of fly ash and pond ash from GHTP Lehra Mohabbat to the accused’s firm. Finding their work unsatisfactory, they had terminated the tender, informed the firm a month in advance and cleared all dues. But on August 3, a mob turned up at their camp and threatened to harm their employees.
As a result, the construction of the Greenfield Delhi-Amritsar-Katra Highway Project under the Bharatmala Project was halted. The matter had also reached Union Minister Nitin Gadkari, who warned of withdrawing all projects from Punjab if the law-and-order situation doesn’t improve.
Dakha police station SHO, inspector KS Dhaliwal said the incident was a result of a monetary dispute between the complainant and the accused. He added that the involvement of farmer unions and Lakha Sidhana supporters is being investigated.
Dakha deputy superintendent of police Jatinder Pal Singh said four accused have been arrested, 13 others identified but the two main accused remain on the run.
The case has been registered under Sections 126 (2) (wrongful restraint ), 351 (2) (criminal intimidation), 79 (word, gesture or act intended to insult the modesty of a woman), 191 (3) (rioting, being armed with a deadly weapon) and 190 (unlawful assembly in prosecution of the common object of that assembly) of Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita.
