Ex-gangster, Dal Khalsa leader booked for defacing signboards

Tribune News Service

Bathinda, April 4

The Bathinda police on Wednesday booked former gangster Lakhbir Singh, alias Lakha Sidana, and Dal Khalsa leader Baba Hardeep Singh Khalsa in four cases regarding smudging English and Hindi signboards.

They had allegedly blackened signboards in English and Hindi outside the district administrative complex, income tax office, PNB and the post office situated in the Civil Lines area. Three cases were registered under Section 3 of the Prevention of Damage to Public Property Act, 1984, and Section 5 of the Punjab Defacement of Property Ordinance Act, 1997, against unidentified persons on the complaints of the Income Tax Department, head post master of the local post office and branch manager of Punjab National Bank. One case was already registered under same sections.

On the other hand, two teams of the Bathinda police on Wednesday conducted raids for the arrest of Sidana at his native village and Hardeep Singh Khalsa at his Gurusar Mehraj village. However, both managed to escape before the raid.

Earlier too, the police had arrested Sidana and Hardeep Singh along with their aides under same charges for smudging signboards in Hindi and English on the Bathinda-Faridkot national highway. They had said their drive was to ensure that Punjabi language gets its due and is placed on top in all signboards.