Alleging an attempt by the local police to shield the Badal-affiliated accused, the Punjab Congress has demanded immediate arrest of the culprits allegedly involved in the assault and disappearance of a popular chicken corner owner in Ludhiana, which they said once again highlighted the total lawlessness prevailing in the state.Accusing the police of trying to protect the culprits, alleged to be kin of the ruling Badals, Punjab Pradesh Congress Committee (PPCC) leaders Malkit Singh Dakha, Gurdev Singh Lapran, Gurpreet Singh Gogi said the fact that the police were yet to arrest the suspects indicated a clear complicity. The PPCC leaders expressed serious concern over the disappearance of Gurjinder Singh Bittu, owner of Aman Chicken, just a few hours after he, along with his sons and employees, was beaten up by relatives of a reputed drug store chain owner over delay in delivery of their food order.Though the police registered a case on the complaint of Gurjinder’s son, the PPCC leaders cited the family to allege that the accused were yet to be arrested since they had connections in the ruling party.
The PPCC leaders pointed out that the accused named in the FIR included Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal’s close aide Bhagwan Singh’s son Ravinderpal Singh Minku, his brother Sadhu, Danny and an unknown person. The police were making lame accuses for not arresting the accused even though Bittu, in an audio message on the social media, had named them, the PPCC leaders noted.Pointing out that the culprits had been carrying licensed revolvers during the assault on Bittu and the others at his eating joint, the PPCC leaders said the government had deliberately failed to crack down on weapons and arms ownership and possession ahead of the Assembly elections, even after the murder of a pregnant dancer in celebratory firing a few days ago in Bathinda.With as many as 52 armed gangs on the lose, as per the state DGP’s own admission, Punjab was sitting on a tinderbox that could flare into large-scale violence at any moment, the PPCC leaders warned.They recalled that following the Bathinda killing of a dancer, PPCC president Captain Amarinder Singh had even written to the Election Commission highlighting the complete collapse of law and order, and the proliferation of arms in Punjab ahead of the Assembly elections.The PPCC leaders urged the EC to crack down immediately on the possession and use of firearms by goons and criminals, patronized by the Badal government, to prevent the political environment from further deterioration.