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Tribune News Service
Ravi Dhaliwal/ Aparna Banerji
Gurdaspur/Jalandhar, May 24
Barely hours before Prime Minister Narendra Modi two rallies in Punjab, police raided houses and hideouts of half a dozen farm leaders in Gurdaspur and Jalandhar–across Nurmahal, Phillaur– and arrested a few of them.
Prime Minister Narandra Modi is scheduled to address a public meeting one in Gurdaspur at 3.30 pm and another in Jalandhar at 5.30 pm.
Peasants, like they did in Patiala yesterday, have threatened that they will not only disrupt the PM’s visit but have also decided to show black flags when he drives from the helipad to the rally venue, a distance of three kilometers.
In Gurdaspur, acting on specific tip-offs, the cops raided the residences of Sukhdev Singh Bhojraj, a member of the Kissan and Jawan Bhalai Morcha, Tarlok Singh and Satbir Singh Sultani, President and general Secretary of the of the Gurdaspur unit of the Kirti Kisan Union and trade union leader Makhan Kohar.
The raids were conducted late yesterday night and in the wee hours today.
No arrests have been made yet as the leaders, anticipating police action, had already left their houses. The leaders were kept abreast by their informers in the police following, which they managed to escape.
DIG (Border) Rakesh Kaushal, however, maintained that no raids were conducted. “We have opened channels of communication with the farm leaders and are negotiating with them to call off their protests,” he said.
There have been rumours since morning that Sarwan Singh Pandher, Coordinator of the Kisan Mazdoor Sangharsh Committee, will be arriving in the city shortly. This, however, was denied by a senior police officer.
Throughout the day yesterday, the farm unions held secret meetings at undisclosed locations planning their next course of action.
The three-km stretch of road leading from the helipad to the rally site is being heavily guarded.
SSPs of the adjoining police districts of Batala, Pathankot, Hoshiarpur and Amritsar (Rural) are doing duty at the PM’s venue.
“We fail to understand as to why the police are trying to arrest us? We have already made it clear that we will protest peacefully,” said a senior leader.
In Jalandhar, BKU Ekta Sidhpur Jalandhar president Kulwinder Singh Machiana was arrested from his house this morning.
He was taken to the Jandiala police station. The union’s district general secretary has also been arrested.
Police have also been deputed outside the house of Kirti Kisan Union district president Santokh Singh Sandhu but he had left his house already.
Farmers are to begin gathering for a protest at Jalandhar between 2.30-3 pm. Before that, they are trying to evade arrest.
Police also carried out two raids this morning at Pendu Mazdoor Union’s Tarsem Peter’s house but he too, had already left. There have been reports of a woman leader, Gurbaksh Kaur from Istri Jagriti Manch, having been arrested at Nawanshahr.
#Gurdaspur
#Narendra Modi
#Punjab Police
