Political leaders attend antim ardas of IPS officer Y Puran Kumar in Panchkula

A large number of political leaders and government officers attended the ‘antim ardas’ (final prayer) of Haryana IPS officer Y Puran Kumar at Gurdwara Nada Sahib in Panchkula on Sunday.

Kumar, a 52-year-old 2001-batch Indian Police Service (IPS) officer, allegedly shot himself dead at his Sector 11 private residence here on October 7.

The prayer was held in the Diwan Hall of Nada Sahib Gurdwara in Haryana.

Kumar’s wife and IAS officer Amneet P Kumar, two daughters, and her brother Amit Rattan, the AAP MLA from Bathinda Rural in Punjab, attended the prayer.

Congress leader Randeep Singh Surjewala, Haryana Congress president Rao Narender Singh, Punjab Assembly Speaker Kultar Singh Sandhwan, Punjab Finance Minister Harpal Singh Cheema, former Punjab minister Raj Kumar Verka, and former MP Ashok Tanwar were among the prominent politicians present.

Haryana chief secretary Anurag Rastogi also made an appearance. Rao Narender Singh told reporters that a condolence message from Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge and party leader Rahul Gandhi was read at the event.

The politician, as well as Cheema, the finance minister, demanded justice for Kumar’s family. “Even in the 21st century, if casteism continues, then it means our system is responsible for it and it needs to be rectified,” Cheema said.

Both Punjab Assembly Speaker Kultar Singh Sandhwan and former MP Tanwar stated that justice must be served.

In an eight-page document, purportedly a ‘final note’, Kumar accused eight senior IPS officers of “blatant caste-based discrimination, targeted mental harassment, public humiliation and atrocities.”