WSN Service:

LUDHIANA: Punjab Human Rights Organisation has held Punjab poli responsible for not only the death of Bhai Jaspal Singh Padda of Khalistan Commando Force but also of the demise of Padda’s father Bhaj Narinder Singh and grandfather, Bhai Darbara Singh.

The P.H.A.O. in a report also revealed that Bhai Padda’s mother Bibi Bakhshish Kaur had been in the custody of the police for ten months.

Padda according to P.H.R.O was arrested by Dhitwan police station SHO. Narinder Singh Run an on May 9 1989. Padda had been released on bail after he spent some time in high security Nabha jail. The militant’s father along with the village elders reached Dhilwan on the police wail Instead of releasing him the police chief asked Padda’s father and other village elders to have the “last glimpse” of Padda because the police said he would soon meet his end soon thereafter the youth was severely beaten up in the presence of his father. This gave Narinder Singh the shock of his life and he died of heart attack two days later.

On village panchayat’s request Padda was released by the police to participate in the last rites of his father. Thereafter Padda got his bait cancelled and was sent to Kapurthala jail in December 1989 he obtained bail and was again released. The police started harassing him again and he went underground on May 6 1990. He joined the Khalistan Commando Force (Panjwar) and was made President of Kapurthala district unit of A.I.S.S.F. (Daljit Singh).

According to the report a police party headed by Bholath S.H.O. Jagjit Singh took away Padda’s mother on June 19 in the presence of several villagers in a red colored Nissan Van This day-light abduction of the daughter-in-law shocked Padda’s grand-father who too died of heart attack on August 14 1990.

The P.H.R.O. report also alleged that more than a dozen close relations of Padda were detained and tortured by the police to know Padda’s whereabouts. Bhai Satpal Singh a close relation left for Germany to escape the police harassment. Except for Padda’s brother no one has been left in the village now.

The police announced the death of Bhai Jaspal Singh Padda along with Bhai Mandip Singh and Bhai Rajwinder Singh on April 131991 at Jaragpur village in the Dhilwan police station area.

Article extracted from this publication >> May 3, 1991