Uneasy calm in Sirsa, cops on alert

Sushil Manav

Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, June 24

An uneasy calm prevails in and around Dera Sacha Sauda headquarters in Sirsa town of Haryana after the murder of dera follower Mohinder Pal Bittu, a key accused in Bargari sacrilege case, in Nabha jail on Saturday.

The police in Sirsa are on high alert and a special vigil is being kept on the activities inside the dera and the localities surrounding it.

More than 2,500 followers had assembled in the dera on Sunday for a routine weekly congregation. Today, very few followers were seen visiting the dera.

“The murder has shaken our members, because we believe that Bittu was framed in a false case by some police officials to settle a score. However, we have told the followers not to create any trouble in Sirsa. We have told them that all of those who want to provide moral support to the victim’s family, they should go to Kotkapura where Bittu’s family lives,” said a dera man, requesting anonymity.

Sirsa Superintendent of Police Arun Singh said the situation was peaceful in the town, but confirmed that the police had been on alert since the Nabha incident.