The Hindu : New Delhi News : Bandh paralyses Punjab

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Thursday, Jul 24, 2008
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Bandh paralyses Punjab

Dera men and Sikhs clash at Fatehabad in Haryana

Chandigarh: Rail and road traffic were paralysed in several parts of Punjab on Monday even as supporters of Dera and Sikhs clashed in Haryana’s Fatehabad during the day-long bandh called by a Sikh group in Punjab and Haryana.

Activists of Sant Samaj a conglomerate of various Sikh organisations squatted on rail tracks near Vala village in Amritsar district during the bandh and demanded arrest of Dera Sacha Sauda chief Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh.

Thousands of passengers were stranded at the Amritsar railway station as bandh supporters blocked the Garib Rath Express and forced cancellation of nine other trains including 2014 Shatabdi Express, 2460 Super Fast, 5708 Amrapali Express, 2716 Sachkhand Express, 2929 Paschim Express, 1058 Dadar Express and 2054 Jan Shatabdi, a report from Amritsar said. Some private educational institutes remained closed at various places in Punjab as precautionary measure.

Traffic on national highways and other roads were also disrupted at 20 places including Fatehgarh, Phagwara and Moga, Patiala, Faridkot and Ropar, officials said, adding that emergency vehicles and ambulances, were however, allowed to pass.

In Haryana’s Fatehabad, Sikhs and Dera supporters clashed when the former tried to forcibly close shops leaving three persons injured as the two groups pelted stones at each other. Authorities have made tight security arrangements at different places in Punjab and Haryana in view of the bandh.

The Sant Samaj has given a bandh call seeking arrest of the Dera chief for his alleged involvement in the killing of three Sikhs including one each in Mumbai and Dabwali in the state recently.

Shiromani Gurdwara Prabandhak Committee , the apex religious body of Sikhs, has decided to support the bandh call and declared Monday as holiday in all its religious, administrative and educational institutions.

Following the bandh, rail services were badly hit while s commercial establishments remained closed in Patiala. Haryana remained by and large unaffected by the bandh call though its effect was visible in Sirsa district, the headquarters of Dera Sacha Sauda, Dabwali town and Fatehabad. In Dabwali, authorities clamped night curfew with relaxation during the day. PTI

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