Statue vandalism: Punjab SC panel chief to visit Nangal village on June 10

Punjab State Scheduled Castes Commission Chairman Jasvir Singh Garhi shall be visiting village Nangal at Phillaur on June 10. During this visit, the Chairman will review the incident of the recent and repeated defacement of the statue of Dr BR Ambedkar at Nangal in the past few months. Garhi's visit comes a week after the new statue of Dr BR Ambedkar at Nangal was defaced on June 2.

The repeated vandalism and defacement of Ambedkar statue at Dalit village of Nangal has deeply angered residents. In the wake of these repeat incidents, Phillaur has witnessed fierce protests and dharnas by Dalit groups and various social organisations.

After an initial defacement of an Ambedkar statue on March 31, during which some men scribbled pro-Khalistan slogans on the glass of the statue then, another incident occurred on June 2. In the incident, a new statue, installed by the villagers, was defaced again wherein a miscreant smeared ink on the face of the statue.

Following the vandalism of the statue both times, US-based secessionist group SFJ claimed responsibility.

Garhi said, "The main purpose of my visit to the village is to understand why the village, which predominantly comprises the Dalit community, is being repeatedly targeted. We are concerned whether these incidents are a conspiracy aimed at dividing the peacefully co-existing Sikh and Dalit communities in the village. I will talk to villagers and proactive action by the administration will also be ensured to bring the guilty of the incidents to book and to prevent such incidents from happening in the future."

Garhi said his visit was aimed at addressing all these concerns during which he will hold a detailed interaction with the villagers to hear their side of the story.