SP shifted, DSP suspended

Ashok Kaura

Phagwara, July 23

A day after communal clashes that left 12 injured in Phagwara, Director General of Police Suresh Arora today suspended Phagwara DSP Kanwalpreet Singh Chahal and transferred SP Arjinder Singh to the police headquarters in Chandigarh for negligence.

AIG, Amritsar, Jasbir Singh has been appointed Phagwara SP, while Manpreet Singh, ACP, cyber crime, Ludhiana, has been shifted as Phagwara DSP.

Meanwhile, the bandh call given by the Shiv Sena evoked a mixed response in the town today. Commercial establishments remained closed in the interior town, while shops in the outer area remained open. The situation remained tense throughout the day.

Kapurthala Deputy Commissioner Jaskiran Singh said he had ordered a magisterial probe into the clashes and appointed Phagwara ADC Iqbal Singh Sandhu to inquire the matter and submit his report in three days. 

The SSP said additional police force was summoned from Nawanshahr, Hoshiarpur and Jalandhar to assist the Kapurthala police. He said the police registered a case under Sections 307, 295A, 427, 148, 149 of the IPC against 50 persons for communal clashes.

Muslim activists along with Sikh hardliners and Dalits constituted an 11-member joint action committee. 

Ludhiana: Shahi Imam Maulana Habib Ur Rehman condemned the Phagwara clashes. Imam said in case the police failed to take action against communal forces, "black day" would be observed on July 29 in the state. "Muslims in state will come on roads against such atrocities," he said.