CHANDIGARH: There are sharp differences in the Punjab Administration over the message to tackle the law and order situation in Punjab. With the hawks who consider the entire Punjab Sikh peasantry as militants or their harbourers, appearing to be having their way. There can be no other explanation for what is happening in Batala police district particularly and in other parts of the state in general, according to the Indian Post a Bombay daily. The Batala happening despite a full exposure in the news media has to be told and retold as a glaring example of atrocities being committed by the police. It was in early January that the panches and Sarpanchs of hundreds of the villages resigned enblock in protest against the police behavior. The Government at first tried to ignore the move by describing the few sarpanches and panches who had resigned as harbourers of the militants. Subsequently as the voice of the protest appeared to be unanimous an enquiry was ordered to be conducted. By the I.G. Border Range C. Paul Singh, But curiously the district police chief Gobind Ram, who was himself accused to be guilty of physical torture of the Sarpanchs was also a member of Probe commission. No wonder the enquiry found police as innocent. As protest became louder the Punjab governor S.S. Ray visited Batala, quite belatedly on February 14 1989 and heard the panches and sarpanches individually. He ordered another enquiry this time, by D.LG. Border Range Surjit Singh and a parallel one by Commissioner of Jalandhar Division Kuldip Singh Janjua. After these officials started conducting their enquires reports came in that those sarpanches who had narrated their tale of woe to Ray has again been given a thrashing as they were bold enough to narrate the happenings and give specific examples to Ray. Now the Governor has decided to visit Amritsar for five days and stay there the next week. It would give him an opportunity again to meet the representatives of the public. By that time he would have received the report of these two officials also. The observer wonders “how many real sarpanches will still have guts to appear before the governor this time?”
Article extracted from this publication >> March 3, 1989
