Villagers oppose gurdwara takeover; 6 injured in firing

Our Correspondent

Tarn Taran, March 13

A group of 40 persons, including women, today opened fire on Manochahal Kalan villagers who were protesting against a move to take over the village gurdwara. Six residents of the village were injured.

The police were deployed in Manochahal Kalan as the situation was tense.

Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) Darshan Singh Mann said, “A case has been registered under Sections 307, 506, 295, 379, 427, 148 and 149 of the IPC and the Arms Act against armed men and women.”

The accused include Ranjodh Singh Yodha, Jaswinder Singh Josh, Sukhpreet Singh and Harbans Singh.

The armed group led by Ranjodh and Jaswinder allegedly pushed “granthi” Hardeep Singh out of the gurdwara and then announced from the public address system that they had taken possession of the shrine.

Ranjodh and Jaswinder also said if anybody dared to oppose them, he would be shot dead.

Atma Singh, president of the gurdwara committee, said villagers started heading towards the gurdwara on hearing the announcement. Seeing this, the armed group opened fire on villagers.

Ranjodh of Manochahal Kalan is a former “granthi” of the gurdwara. He was removed from the post after he got embroiled in a murder case. He was convicted of the crime and released a year ago.

The SSP said, “Most of the accused have been arrested.”