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A Sangrur farmer, who was injured in the farmer-police clashes at the Khanauri border on February 21, has alleged that he was forcibly picked by Haryana police from the Punjab territory, taken into Haryana and given beatings.
In his statement recorded before a judicial magistrate from Chandigarh district courts, on the directions of Punjab and Haryana high court, Preetpal Singh, 30, said that 8-10 Haryana cops had come to the Punjab side, dragged him to the other side, stuffed him into a silo and given beatings.
The statement was produced before the bench of justice Harkesh Manuja on Friday during the proceedings initiated by the court on the plea from his father Davinder Singh, who in his petition on February 23, had alleged illegal detention of Preetpal by Haryana police. Preetpal, is currently undergoing treatment at the Post Graduate Institute of Medical Education and Research (PGIMER).
The PGIMER, in its report, had stated that the possibility of physical assault by blunt force cannot be ruled out. Four of the injuries are serious while the remaining 14 are simple injuries caused by blunt force, the report, which was commissioned by the high court, said.
Haryana terms him main instigator of Feb 21 violence
During the hearing, the Haryana government told the court that around 15 police personnel were injured in the February 21 violence and eight cops have named him the “main instigator”. It further demanded that the statement given to the magistrate be supplied to the Haryana police. Additional advocate general, Deepak Sabherwal, also demanded that the plea be disposed of as he has been traced now.
The court, however, refused to drop the proceedings and observed that in the earlier affidavits Haryana had not named him and the fresh claims appear to be an “afterthought and beyond comprehension” of the court.
Now the court has sought response from the Punjab government in view of his statement and his representation to the state’s director general of police, which alleged abduction and beatings by Haryana policemen.
Preetpal was among the scores of farmers camping at Khanauri and Shambhu borders between the two states since February 13, after they were stopped from marching to Delhi, seeking legal guarantee to minimum support price, farm loan waiver and other demands. In the clash that broke out on February 21, a Bathinda farmer, Shubh Karan, was also killed.
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