4 months on, no report yet on attack on mining officer

Aman Sood

Tribune News Service

Patiala, March 15

Almost four months after mining mafia henchmen allegedly attacked General Manager (Mining) Tehal Singh Sekhon, who was later “thrashed” by an SHO at a police station, the probe report is yet to be submitted. The investigation has failed to establish that the officer was thrashed in the police station, even as it suggests that he “fired at the vehicle” loaded with illegal sand.

The probe ordered by the government is yet to be completed. It was marked to the Patiala Deputy Commissioner Kumar Amit, who marked it further to SDM, Rajpura, Sanjiv Kumar, who sent it for probe to Tehsildar Harsimran Singh. However till date, the report is yet to be submitted for necessary action.

Sources say the initial report failed to corroborate the claims of the mining officer that he was thrashed inside the police station despite the statement of Sekhon, who alleged that the SHO hit him with a stick and thrashed him. Sekhon in his statement had claimed that the SHO had pressurised him to withdraw his statement and not name the local Congress MLA in his complaint.

Sources said the report mentions that the mining officer Tehal Singh Sekhon fired a gun shot at the vehicle occupants on November 19 last year. “The vehicle occupants claim that the mining officer fired at them without any provocation,” they added.

Tehsildar Harsimran Singh says that he has recorded the statements and prima facie it appears that the mining officer was not thrashed by the police after he was taken to the police station for firing at the vehicle loaded with sand.

“The report failed to establish that the SHO in any manner hit the mining officer or pressured him,” said Tehsildar Harsimran Singh. “However statements by the SHO and those accused of illegal mining states that a gun shot was fired at them by the mining officer,” he claimed, adding that he would soon submit the report.

Sekhon had earlier alleged that illegal mining was rampant in the area at the behest of Ghanaur Congress MLA. The latter has refuted the allegations and said illegal mining was rampant before he was elected MLA and he or any of his supporters had nothing to do with illegal mining.

Deputy Commissioner Kumar Amit could not be contacted for comments.

‘Pressure tactics’

Tehal Singh Sekhon (pic) had alleged that the henchmen of mining mafia had attacked him. Later, he was allegedly thrashed by an SHO. In his statement, he had alleged that the SHO had pressured him to withdraw his statement and not name a Congress MLA in his complaint.