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YPS Chowk blockade: Traffic travails continue as morcha’s stir completes 1 year
The rotary, near the Chandigarh-Mohali border, was completely blocked by the Qaumi Insaaf Morcha on January 7, 2023, majorly hitting inter-city movement of traffic
Sunday marks a whole year since the Qaumi Insaaf Morcha laid siege to the YPS Chowk in Mohali, demanding release of Sikh prisoners who have completed their jail terms. But there is no end in sight to commuting travails at the major traffic lifeline.
The rotary, near the Chandigarh-Mohali border, was completely blocked by the morcha on January 7, 2023, majorly hitting inter-city movement of traffic.
For 241 days, protesters continued to hold traffic to ransom before one side of the road towards Chandigarh’s Sector 51 was opened on September 4, 2023, a day before the Punjab and Haryana high court was to hear the ongoing PIL from NGO ArriveSAFE, seeking removal of the protesters.
But the other side of the road has remained blocked, impeding smooth movement of traffic. Commuters travelling via the rotary between Chandigarh and Mohali are forced to move at a snail’s pace, jostling for space on the single side.
Weathering the second winter, with temperature dropping below 5°C at night, protesters refuse to budge from the roundabout, with countless tents and other protest paraphernalia still standing in place and police watching on from the sidelines.
At present, around 250 protesters continue to stage a sit-in near the YPS Chowk. The numbers swell at the time of a procession or rally.
HIgh court’s tough stance
Since March 2023, the high court has been coming down heavily, mainly on Punjab government, for its failure to remove the protesters.
In October, the high court had sought Centre’s response as Punjab shared that it was an inter-state issue, and Chandigarh and Centre also needed to take steps for resolution of the impasse. Two months before, the court had warned that it won’t hesitate in ordering use of force to remove the protesters.
Police had been holding a number of meetings with representatives of the protesters and a peaceful resolution was on the cards, said a UT police official, requesting anonymity.
“When we cleared one side of the road, we were promised that the state government would help us get parole for Paramjit Singh Bheora, who was convicted of killing former Punjab chief minister Beant Singh, but the promise was not fulfilled. Thousands of protesters will reach here from Fatehgarh Sahib on January 11, following which will decide on the decision to hold a rally on January 26,” Jandiala added.
The protest site has seen multiple incidents of violence over the past year. On February 8, protesters had clashed with police forces at the Sector 52/53 dividing road after being stopped from marching towards Chandigarh, leaving 33 cops injured. The latest incident of violence, involving protesters, was recorded on September 28 when a Nihang allegedly opened fire and assaulted the leader of another faction of Nihangs.
While the FIR into the February attack mentioned stringent non-bailable offences such as attempt to murder, criminal intimidation and rioting, police have not made a single arrest in the case in an entire year, raising question marks on the investigation.
Two people have also died during the duration of the protest. On March 24, the decomposed body of Surjit Singh, a Nihang from Ludhiana, was found in one of the tents.
On April 12, a 65-year-old man, part of the agitation since the beginning, was found dead near the protest site. Police attributed both deaths to cardiac arrest.
Thousands expected to congregate at rotary for first anniversary
On Sunday, thousands of morcha supporters are expected to reach the protest site to observe the agitation’s first anniversary, according to police.
One of the key organisers of the morcha, Dilsher Singh Jandiala said the protesters will organise peaceful ceremonies to mark the first anniversary on Sunday.
“We will do path and kirtan ceremonies on Sunday. We have given a call for a public gathering and thus around 10,000 people are expected to join here. The protest so far witnessed many important highlights, including release of activist Surat Singh Khalsa, 89, in March from Dayanand Medical College and Hospital after eight years. Khalsa was on hunger strike since June 2016 for release of Sikh prisoners and was deliberately hospitalised for many years. Though we are seeking absolute freedom for the Sikh prisoners who have completed jail terms, a few of them were released on bails,” Jandiala said.
Other than the demand for release of Sikh prisoners, the protesters have sought registration of a murder case against the officials and politicians allegedly responsible for the police action on Sikh protesters at Kotkapura and Behbal Kalan, besides seeking probe into disappearance of 328 swaroops of Guru Granth Sahib.
