Tribune News Service

Jalandhar, December 14

As the SAD leaders were today busy in the 101st anniversary celebrations of the foundation of the party at Moga, it came known that the challans over the various FIRs lodged against them for organising dharnas on December 8, 2017, had been filed in the respective courts.

The case

• Months after stepping out of power in 2017, Akalis had lodged state-wide protests against the alleged attack on party leaders in Ferozepur. The day had coincided with the 90th birthday of ex-CM Parkash Singh Badal
• All strategic locations, including, river bridges, highway intersections etc had been chosen to lodge the protest making Punjab come to a complete standstill. Thousands of people who were unaware of the protests had got harried

In the various replies furnished to Nawanshahr-based RTI activist Parvinder Kittna, the Punjab Police authorities had been maintaining that they were trying to arrest the accused for violation of Section 8B of the National Highways Act and Sections 148, 149, 188, 283, 341 and 431 of the IPC but now they have finally submitted the challans after nearly four years of the lodging of the FIR.

With this, the party leaders, including SAD chief Sukhbir Badal and dozens of other senior leaders including Bikram Majithia, Mantar Brar and Mahesh Inder Singh Grewal, are set to face trials in various courts of Punjab. Kittna along with activists Kuldeep Singh Khehra, and advocate Hakam Singh had moved the Punjab and Haryana High Court against the Punjab DGP over inaction and notice had been issued on October 22, 2019. The date was put off to February 11, 2020, and later got put off due to courts remaining partly shut due to pandemic.

At Makhu police station in Ferozepur, FIR No. 171 had been lodged against Sukhbir Badal, Bikram Majithia, Ranjit Singh Brahmpura, Rozy Barkandi and others in which challan has now been presented. Likewise, challan had been filed against Mahesh Inder Grewal, Hira Singh Gabria, Sharanjit Dhillon, Manpreet Ayali and Darshan Shivalik in FIR No. 233.

The Hoshiarpur police, too, has filed challan against Sohan Singh Thandal, Surinder Singh Bhullewal Rathan, Satwinder Dhatt, Avtar Singh Johal and others.

For traffic jam at Nawanshahr, challans have been filed against Banga MLA Sukhwinder Sukhi, Jarnail Singh Wahid, Sukhdeep Sukar and others. At Sujanpur police station, challan has been presented against ex-minister Des Raj Dhugga, Kamlesh Kaur and others. For Beas dharna, challan has been filed against ex-minister Gulzar Singh Ranike and others in FIR no. 236.

Notably, an FIR No. 100 was lodged against Jagir Kaur and others in Dhilwan police station but the police filed a cancellation report which got accepted by the court.