Day after clash, 11 protesters arrested

Muktsar : A day after the clash between sacked suwidha centre employees and cops at Badal village – which left 27 persons injured — 11 protesters were arrested today.
Thirteen of them were booked by name under Sections 307, 353, 186, 332, 333, 427, 341, 120-B, 148 and 149 of the IPC at Lambi police station. A case was also registered against over 100 unidentified protesters on the charges of attempt to murder, tearing off uniform of cops, deterring a public servant from discharge of duty etc. Those booked include Harmeet Singh, Charanjit Rai, Abhishek Kaura, Sunny Gupta, Satpal Singh, Gurmeet Singh, Neel Kanth, Avtar Singh, Iqbal Singh, Rajvir Singh, Naresh Kumar, Rajan and Arun Kumar. About 175 protesters, who were taken into preventive custody under Sections 107 and 151 of the CrPC yesterday, were sent to jails in Muktsar and Bathinda.
Meanwhile, the police virtually sealed the Chief Minister’s native village today. Gurpreet Singh Gill, Muktsar SSP, said, “We strengthened security at Badal village following inputs that the protesters were trying to regroup.” A village resident said 25-30 cops remained deployed throughout the day outside the CM’s residence. The police claimed that no woman protester was booked or remanded in judicial custody. Sources said the women protesters were released last night at a gurdwara in Muktsar town.
Satpal Singh, general secretary, Punjab State Suwidha Centre Employees’ Union, said, “All union members who tried to go to Lambi were detained. We are not aware of their whereabouts. We don’t even have a copy of the FIR. The cops have also confiscated the phones of our activists.”
He alleged that five union activists were awaiting treatment at the Community Health Centre, Lambi, as the staff was not doing the needful.