SAD leaders meet police chief

Our Correspondent

Ludhiana, February 18

Senior leaders of the Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD-B), led by party vice-president and former minister Maheshinder Singh Grewal, today met Police Commissioner Rakesh Agrawal to lodge their protest over false cases registered by the police against party district president Ranjit Singh Dhillon and Youth Akali Dal district president Gurdeep Singh Gosha for supporting street vendors who were facing harassment at the hands of the Municipal Corporation (MC) and the police.

The SAD-B leaders said the police chief gave them a patient hearing and assured justice after the investigation of the case.

Grewal said by removing street vendors from their present place, the MC had backed out from an undertaking given to the Punjab and Haryana High Court that no action would be taken against vendors till the vending zones were designated and alternate sites allotted to vendors as per the provisions of the National Street Venders Policy. He said SAD-B leaders Dhillon and Gosha had only supported the protest by vendors, but the police had registered cases against them which was an unjust and unlawful act.

President of the legal wing of SAD Parupkar Singh Ghuman said holding protest was not an offence and it was the right of the people according to the Constitution of India. “FIRs against party leaders Dhillon and Gosha are against the law and they will fight a legal battle,” he said.

Former Mayor Harcharan Singh Gohalwaria also said the MC House had adopted a resolution to take tehbazari fee from the vendors and not to shift them till vending zones were demarcated and notified. “At this point, taking any action against the street vendors is not justified,” he asserted.

Both Dhillon and Gosha said they would not be deterred by the registration of cases against them since they had supported the victimised and poor street vendors. “We shall continue to do so in future as well and we are not scared of any police action,” they said.