Injured in ‘attack’, Ropar trader names MLA as perpetrator

Ropar, September 10

A businessman injured in an alleged attack near his home at Bassi village in Nurpur Bedi area has named Ropar MLA Dinesh Chadha as the perpetrator.

The injured Kulwinder Singh, who has been admitted to Ropar civil hospital, alleged that the MLA was behind the attack on him because his business rival Gurchet Singh who was the MLA’s confidant.

Senior Akali leader and former Cabinet minister Dr Daljit Singh Cheema visited Kulwinder at the hospital and demanded a judicial inquiry into the incident. Cheema said it was unfortunate that no action was taken by the Chief Minister even after a complaint of harassment by the MLA had been lodged with him by the victim nearly a year ago.

On Saturday morning, Kulwinder was taken to hospital with serious injuries on his head and other parts of the body.

Kulwinder said that he had a business of gypsum dumps in the area and Gurchet Singh of his village was his business rival. He alleged that the MLA was supporting Gurchet due to which he had to shut down his business.

He claimed that he had also written a complaint in this regard to Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann last year but nothing was done. He alleged that on September 5, during a dharna by truck union members at Kiratpur Sahib, he publicly named MLA Chadha for ruining his business due to which he was attacked on Saturday.

Gurchet Singh alleged that Kulwinder Singh, who used to be his business partner in the past, had forged his father’s signatures to usurp their land and a case was going on in this regard. He alleged Kulwinder had been pressurising him to withdraw the case and yesterday, Kulwinder attacked his son Harjap Singh and nephew Jaswinder Singh, injuring the latter seriously.

MLA Chadha, denying any involvement in the incident, said that it was a dispute between two business rivals of the same village who were in litigation against each other for years. No one should play politics over the issue, he said.