Farmers go on strike to protest police refusal to register suicide by farmer in Bathinda

BATHINDA: The activists of farm organisation BKU Ekta Ugrahan on Sunday started an indefinite protest outside Bathinda Cantonment police station to urge them to register a case under charges of abetment of suicide against two partners of a commission agent firm of Bhucho town in Bathinda.
Farmer Manjit Singh, 45, of Bhucho had committed suicide on February 9. The family had initially agreed for legal proceedings under Section 174 CrPC (unnatural death). Later, it was found out that two partners of a Bhucho-based commission agent firm had allegedly duped the farmer of Rs 20 lakh, because of which he had ended his life.
According to deceased Manjit Singh’ son Sukhjit Singh, the family had sold 1.25 acre of land for which commission agents were to pay Rs 20 lakh. But they refused to pay up. Manjit Singh consumed poisonous substance on January 26 and had died at a private hospital on February 9. The family owns 3.5 acre of land at present.
Sukhjit Singh and BKU Ekta Ugrahan district president Shingara Singh Mann said, “We met the Bathinda SSP on Saturday evening and called up the police station to register a case. But the police refused to register the case. The refusal is in violation of directions issued by Constitutional Bench of Supreme Court in the case of ‘Lalita Kumari versus Government of UP and others: 2013(4) R.C.R.(Criminal) 979, as Manjit Singh committed suicide due to circumstances forced on to him by the accused commission agents.”
Sukhjit said that he has documentary evidence to establish that the commission agents had cheated the deceased of Rs.20 lakh.
Bathinda SSP Nanak Singh said, “Police is looking into the matter and waiting for the autopsy report. Action will be taken according to the findings of the report.”