Protest as religious event flex board found torn

Tension surfaced in Gol Chowk, Phagwara, after members of Hindu organisations, led by Inderjit Karwal, vice-president of the Shiv Sena, Punjab, found that a flex board promoting a religious event had been torn and replaced with a poster advertising a Christian programme.

The Hindu flex board, which promoted “Baba Balak Nath ki Chauki,” scheduled for March 20, was allegedly defaced by unknown miscreants, who then pasted a flex of a Christian programme set to take place on March 19.

In response, around 30-40 members of local Hindu organisations gathered at the spot, expressing outrage and alleging that members of the Christian community were responsible for the act.

To prevent escalation, no members from the Christian community arrived at the scene. Later, Hindu leaders approached Phagwara City Police Station, demanding that an FIR be lodged under Section 295 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) for deliberate religious offence.

They also urged the police to review the CCTV footages from the area to identify and apprehend the miscreants at the earliest. Later, Inspector Aman Kumar Daveshvar reached the protest site and pacified the protesters with an assurance of justice and action against the miscreants.

The inspector assured a thorough investigation into the matter.

Law and order in the area remain under control, with an adequate police presence deploying at Gol Chowk to maintain peace.