Dalit bodies block national highway to seek justice for Haryana IPS officer

Dalit organisations protested and blocked the national highway near Jalandhar bypass to seek justice for Haryana IPS officer Y Puran Kumar, who recently died by suicide. They were demanding registration of a murder case against all police officials whose name figured in the suicide note.

On Wednesday morning, Dalit organisations, led by the Bharatiya Dharma Samaj (Bhavadhas), blocked the Jalandhar Bypass intersection. The Delhi-Amritsar National Highway-44 was also blocked for some time.

The protesters insisted on calling the Deputy Commissioner for submitting the memorandum. Meanwhile, SDM Jasleen Kaur Bhullar reached the spot and spoke with them but the protesters insisted on a meeting with the Deputy Commissioner. However, the SDM managed to convince them and fixed their meeting with the DC, following which the protest was lifted and traffic was restored. The DC also held a meeting with the protesters. He pacified them and assured that their demands would be raised with the government.

However, commuters faced huge inconvenience due to the protest as long queues of vehicles were witnessed on the highway. To ensure a smooth flow of traffic, the police had initiated diversion of vehicles.

During the protest, the protesters raised slogans against the Haryana Government and the police. Chaudhary Yashpal, a leader of the Bhavadhas, who attended the protest, said ambulances, school buses and other emergency services were were allowed to move during the blockade.

The Dalit organisations demanded that all officials whose names were given by the IPS officer in his suicide note should be arrested in the case and a murder case should be registered against them. They also threw slippers at a picture of the Haryana DGP, who was sent on leave by the government.

Amit Kumar from Goraya, who was stuck in a traffic jam, said: “I had to go to the DMCH for a medical check-up of my mother but

got stuck in traffic near the Ludhiana-Jalandhar bypass intersection due to the road blockade.”

Another commuter, Rohit Arora, said: “I was going to pick up my children from school as they had been waiting there for an hour. I had no option than to wait here till the time the protest was lifted”.