Representatives of the Dalit community blocked PAP Chowk for over three hours, lodging their protest against the panchayat of Nurpur Chatha village that wants to free the panchayat land used by the community for Valmiki temple.

They said the panchayat land was being used for religious sites in various villages. "Various religious structures are often raised on panchayat land but the Valmiki temple in our village is being targeted by our panchayat. The action is one-sided and deliberate. Even the police are siding the panchayat", alleged Joginder S Mann, Chairman, Adivasi Gian Nath Puran Sangharsh Dal, who led the protest.

The agitators alleged, "The panchayat and the police have been specifically targeting the Dalit community of our village over one issue or the other."

The protesters were also joined by residents of Jalalpur village of Lohian where sacrilege of religious scriptures had taken place. "As many as 60 pages of our granth were found torn. We lodged a complaint with the police. The FIR has been registered against unknown persons", they said.

During the protest, the commuters faced trouble and had to take long route to reach their destinations. The commuters from the Rama Mandi side entering Jalandhar were directed via Jalandhar Cantonment instead of the highway. The commuters from Phagwara side to Amritsar remained unaffected as the flyover was not blocked. Only the road beneath the flyover remained blocked.

Several passengers who often take buses from PAP Chowk instead of the bus stand could not catch a bus from the site as the buses could not reach the blocked PAP Chowk. The traffic police had diverted the commuters towards internal roads, not allowing them to reach near the protest site.