2015 Sector-17 protest: 15 get 6-month imprisonment for attacking police personnel

Tribune News Service

Ramkrishan Upadhyay

Chandigarh, November 14

Chandigarh Judicial Magistrate (First Class) Parmod Kumar has sentenced 15 persons — Kamaljit Singh, Afzal Khan, Saroj Pawan, Hasmeet Singh, Hirender Singh, Mohmad Zakir, Archana, Beena, Kanti, Florencia, Ruman, Navkiran, Firdosh, Jyoti and Esha Arora — to six months of simple imprisonment after convicting them in an eight-year-old case registered for allegedly violating an order of the district magistrate (DM) and attacking police personnel during a protest.

A case was registered under Sections 147, 148, 188, 323, 332 and 353 read with Section 149 of the IPC (1860) based on the statement of Sub Inspector (SI) Jaswinder Kaur.

According to the complaint, SI Jaswinder and some other police personnel had been deployed in Sector 17, Chandigarh, on June 29, 2015, to maintain law and order. Many people led by the accused started gathering in front of the Deputy Commissioner’s office, which is situated in the sector. Those who had gathered on the scene were shown the district magistrate’s order against the assembly of five or more people.

But they still did not relent and instead started raising slogans against the UT administration.

When asked to leave, they started pelting stones at the cops and attacked some of them with sticks. Some police personnel sustained injuries in the attack. Over the course of the investigation, 18 persons were arrested. Charges were framed against the accused, but they pleaded not guilty.

While the counsel for the accused argued that they had been falsely implicated in the case, the public prosecutor claimed that the prosecution had proved the case beyond a shadow of a doubt.

After hearing the arguments, the court convicted the accused under Sections 147, 148, 188, 323, 332 and 353 of the IPC and sentenced them to six months of imprisonment.

The court observed, “The accused assaulted the policemen in daylight… The occurrence in this case demonstrates a sense of arrogance and a complete lack of self-discipline.” Such actions by members of the general public are abhorrent to civic sense and the duty of citizens to abide by the rule of law, the court further noted.

Had violated DM’s order

• Fifteen people have been sentenced to six months of simple imprisonment after convicting them in an eight-year-old case registered for allegedly violating an order of the district magistrate (DM) and attacking police personnel during a protest
• A case was registered under Sections 147, 148, 188, 323, 332 and 353 read with Section 149 of the IPC (1860) based on the statement of Sub Inspector (SI) Jaswinder Kaur

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