AMRITSAR SAHIB, Punjab—Feeling heat over cross FIR registered by Police against its office-bearers, members, and officials for attacking the Sikh agitators on October 24, the Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee (SGPC) today wrote a letter to Punjab Chief Minister Captain Amarinder Singh seeking cancellation of the FIR.
The letter written by the SGPC president Gobind Singh Longowal was also marked to the Chief Secretary and Director General of Police (DGP) of the state.
Condemning the FIR, he said it has uncovered the intention of the state government which wanted to damage the apex representative organization of the Sikhs. Seeking cancellation of the cross FIR, he demanded the arrest of the Sikh agitators against whom the FIR was registered.
In fact, the Police were bound to register a cross FIR on the complaint of Sikh agitators who were deadly assaulted by the SGPC personnel and injured seriously, otherwise, it had spared them on the day of the attack. If it registered cross FIR, it was with minimal charges, while that against the Sikh agitators who were the victims, was with harsh charges including section 307 (attempt to murder) of IPC.
Under mysterious circumstances, the cross FIR is being kept secret by the Police. It has been learned that it was registered under section 323 (voluntarily causing hurt), 342 (wrongful confinement), 147 (rioting), and 149 (unlawful assembly) at Police Station (E-Division).
This action is milder than that taken by the Police against the victims, the Sikh activists who had been undertaking morcha (indefinite sit-in) to demand justice in the case of misappropriation in the SGPC’s publishing house, that led as many as 328 Guru Granth Sahib’s saroops going missing. The Police had to take this action as the victims sustained serious injuries and were hospitalized.
The victims are booked under harsh section—307 (attempt to murder) of IPC, besides others—452 (assault), 148 (rioting) and 149 (unlawful assembly). Bhai Balbir Singh Muchhal, one of the leaders of the morcha and victims, demanded harsh sections against the SGPC operatives who brutalized the Sikh activists in the style of mahants during British rule.
Meanwhile, members of the Sikh organizations including Shiromani Akali Dal (Democratic), All India Sikh Students Federation (Bhoma) and Alliance of Sikh Organization staged a protest today along the heritage street leading to Sri Darbar Sahib against the SGPC for brutalizing the Sikh agitators.
As the SGPC is beleaguered in the entire episode of the missing saroops, it released another press note today to counter those who led this protest.
