Several tales can be told about the part of the Punjab security men who poison minds and add fuel to prevailing tensions in Punjab.
‘An ambush party of the BSF men fired without a warning at its ‘own patrols that had strayed near Dera Baba Nanak in Gurdaspur sector Two men died.
In Chandigarh a Hindu lawyer is reported to have an altercation in his house with a young Sikh client and began to shout that a terrorist had come to kill him. The panicking youngster fled and was shot by the guard at the adjoining house.
But what happened in village Rurpewal near Nakodar in the Jullundur district is an eye opener. Bachna Hindu bought six watermelons for five rupees from JoBinder Singh’s farm but on his way out tried to filch two more Joginder Singh’s son caught him and gave him a sound thrashing Bachna just went to the police station at Shah Kot 9 km away but when the policemen dismissed his complaint as baseless he made for the nearby CRPF and complained that he and the other Hindus in the village had been beaten up by the Sikh terrorists hiding there.
Reports India-Today ‘In a fit of over zeal the CRPF sent a nine man patrol to the village. They came shouting abuses and beat up all of us” says Charan Kaur Joginder Singh’s widow. The CRPF men shot Joginder Singh and his son. The incident caused widespread resentment as villages refused to cremate the bodies till action was taken against the CRPF men This brought over 10000 angry Villagers into the streets and made the Punjab police register a case of murder against the CRPF jawans.
There are signs of fresh distrust growing between the CRPF men and the Punjab Police in Amritsar Where personnel of the two forces clashed in the streets.
Article extracted from this publication >> July 25, 1986
