By Satinder Bains
CHANDIGARH: It is tragic that the mighty Punjab Police is losing its sheen under political shadow and trend of owing private armies is on the rise in Punjab more on the lines of Bihar and Uttar Pradesh where people are forced to live under constant dictat and threat of mafias.
Not only that wine contactors, sand and transport mafias have raised their private armies to protect and promote their business interests, the the SGPC and ruling Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) too have formed their private armies. The Guru Granth Sahib Satkar Committee, Gau Raksha Dal ec, taking law into their hands are extra-constitutional forces mushrooming in Punjab.
On June 14 (Saturday) a NRI family of Mansa who was travelling to Delhi airport to catch the flight to Canada was chased and assaulted on the way by the henchmen of a local wine contractor. The henchmen of the contractor who were hired to check the vehicles and find if somebody is carrying liquor bottles purchased from some other area. Most of these henchmen are criminals who are wanted in criminal cases and given shelter by the infleuntial contractors having proximity with the ruling Shiromani Akali Dal(SAD).
The incident of beating up of NRI Daljit Singh on the highway is an eye opener and serious threat to the society. Daljit Singh who escaped with minor injuries had missed the flight. He said that he was lucky that he managed to flee when being beaten up on the road. Daljit Singh is not the only victim of 'private armies' raised by the wine contractors and hundereds of local people face the wrath of armed henchmen who need no legal permission to check your vehicles and thrash you if violated law laid by their masters.
As per a news report in the Hindustan Times, another victim Tushar who was returning with his friends from a marriage party was chased and assaulted by the henchmen of wine contractor. They also took away valuables in the possession of victims. It was on Tushar's complaint that finally Mansa police registered a case under sections 307, , 392, 427, 146 and 149 of IPC against unidentified persons.
Not only in Mansa but in whole of the state the liquor contactors have raised private squades who barge into marriage functions to check illegal purchase of liquor and misbehave with the guests. The SAD government has made it mandatory to purchase the liquor for parties from the jurisdiction of liquoir contactor where marraige function is being held. The contactors charge double the normal rates for marriage functions and if you dare to bring the liquor from other vends, you and your guests might be humiliated and fined in connivance with the excise officials.
The goons also travel in the private buses and number of incidents are reported where passengers who demand ticket or defy the dictats of bus staff were beaten up and thrown out of the bus. The Moga Orbit bus incident in whcih a minor girl Arshdeep Kaur and her mother were thrown out of the bus killing the girl was handiwork of henchmen of the Orbit Aviation Company owned by Deputy Chief Minister Sukhbir Singh Badal. This is common practice with all transporters.
Even the ruling SAD has raised a private army to counter the protests agains the Punjab Government.Recently about 200 private musclemen were deployed by SAD to counter a protest by the Orbit Kand action committee at Rampurphul, the home constituency of Rural Development minister Sikandar Singh Maluka. The musclemen were in addition to police deploy by district administration.
Many of the Youth Akali Dal workers who run the gangs of criminals were found involved in henious crimes like rape and murder. For the first time Punjab has witnessed gang wars. These very gangsters are private army in themselves and getting political protection.
Similarly the task force of SGPC is like a private army which is used to take possession of controversial Gurdawaras and land attached to Gurdwaras. Though this is the duty of Police to resolve the disputes, SGPC is not depending on police for its affairs. SGPC had never got verified the antecedents of persons recrtuited in the task force.
If the trend of raising private forces to protect the business and political interests continued as such, Punjab would become a mafia ruled state and common people would just be slaves of these private armies.