BJP demands justice for Randhawa family, protests

Amritsar: The BJP held a state-level protest in Amritsar on Saturday, demanding justice for the family of district manager of the Punjab Warehousing Corporation, Gagandeep Singh Randhawa, who ended his life after allegedly facing torture from former transport minister Laljit Singh Bhullar.The BJP called for a CBI investigation into the case.Punjab BJP president Sunil Jakhar said the party would continue its fight until the family received justice. He emphasised that this was not a political programme but a fight for justice. What happened to Gagandeep Singh Randhawa can happen to anyone, which is why every Punjabi is part of this fight, the senior leader added.Jakhar affirmed that all the accused, including Bhullar, must be punished.He further said, in another case of harassment involving a woman from Tarn Taran district, an AAP MLA was acquitted through a compromise, and the govt was trying to handle Randhawa's case similarly.Jakhar alleged that the chief minister, Bhagwant Mann, himself was "compromised".Referring to the attack on the BJP headquarters in Chandigarh, the BJP leader said such attempts would not deter the party and it would continue its struggle to ensure "the killers of a capable officer do not escape, no innocent person is killed in fake encounters, and justice is delivered to the people of Punjab".Questioning the CM's claims about jobs, Jakhar asked how many thousands of youth had been forced to seek employment in gangster networks under the AAP govt.The protest held outside the Hall Gate was attended by several senior leaders and workers, including working president Ashwani Sharma, Union minister of state Ravneet Singh Bittu and national secretary Tarun Chugh.Talking to the media, Chugh claimed that there was widespread anger among the public, which was now visible on the streets. He alleged that the influence of the mafia and gangsters was rapidly increasing in Punjab.The speakers alleged that earlier, criminals used to operate secretly, but now, they were openly committing crimes and even uploading videos on social media. They claimed that this reflected the failure of the govt. They further said incidents of extortion, robbery and threats were continuously increasing, creating an atmosphere of fear among the public.Traffic disruption irks commuters (Box)The protest on Saturday led to severe congestion, with the city's traffic system remaining crippled for over two hours. While leaders criticised the state govt from the stage, the people stuck in the jam expressed anger and frustration. Although the demonstration was scheduled for 11 am, the police had already sealed all roads leading to the Hall Gate an hour earlier, worsening the situation for commuters during peak traffic hours and causing widespread disruption across key parts of the city.MSID:: 130017743 413 |