16-10-2021 The Asian Independent

www.theasianindependent.co.uk
ASIA
16-10-2021 to 31-10-2021
3
Nihangs told it is a farmers' protest, not
religious movement: Yogendra Yadav
New Delhi. Swaraj India
Convener Yogendra Yadav
on Friday said the Nihang
group, accused of mercilessly
killing a man at the
Singhu border, was several
times told by farmers' leaders
that this is not a religious
movement but a site for
farmers' agitation.
"Our several leaders have
time and again told them
(Nihang group) in the past
one-and- a-half month that
this is a farmers' protest and
not a religious movement.
P.L. Punia to head Congress'
UP Campaign Committee
New Delhi. Congress on Friday
announced five committees for
Uttar Pradesh elections and
appointed General Secretary
P.L. Punia as the head of the
Campaign Committee.
Acharya Pramod Krishnam
has been appointed Chairman
of the Chargesheet Committee,
former Union Minister Salman
Khurshid will head the
Manifesto Committee, Rajesh
Mishra the Planning and
Strategy Committee and former
state President Nirmal Khatri
the Election Coordination
Committee. The Congress has
also appointed four new
General Secretaries, 12 Vice
Presidents and 31 new
Secretaries as it seeks to galvanise
its state unit ahead of
polls. General Secretary in
charge Priyanka Gandhi has
been on forefront in the
Lakhimpur Kheri incident, as
Congress demands the dismissal
of Union Minister of
State for Home Affairs Ajay
Misra Teni for a free and fair
probe into the Lakhimpur
Kheri violence that claimed
eight lives.
One killed as speeding car rams religious procession in Chhattisgarh
Jashpur (Chhattisgarh). At
least one person was killed and
several others seriously injured
as a speeding car ploughed into
people proceeding to immerse
a Durga idol in Pathalgaon area
of Chhattisgarh's Jashpur district
on Friday, the police said.
While a police officer at the
spot said that four people have
died and more than 15 are seriously
injured, Jashpur's
Superintendent of Police Vijay
Agarwal confirmed only one
death so far and a number of
injuries.
Witnesses claimed that the
driver deliberately targetted the
gathering on Raigarh road, and
a viral video of the incident
makes for disturbing viewing.
The immersion procession
had set out from Pathalgaon at
around 1.30 p.m. when the
maroon-coloured Sumo, being
driven at a speed of 100-120
km per hour, crashed into it,
throwing people around "like
footballs" and crushing others,
But even then they remained
there," he said in a video
message.
Condemning the murder
and demanding strict punishment
for the perpetrators
of the barbaric act, he said
that the Samyukt Kisan
Morcha (SKM), will fully
cooperate and support a
legal investigation into the
matter.
The victim, identified as
Lakhbir Singh, a resident
of Punjab's Tarn Taran district,
was residing for the
past three to four days with
the same group of Nihang
Sikhs, who brutally killed
him, he said.
"We are against sacrilege
of any religious text
but on this basis no person
can be allowed to take law
in his own hands," Yadav
added.
Earlier on Friday, the
body of a man with a hand
chopped off was found at
the Singhu border, where
farmers have been protesting
against the three contentious
farm laws for the
past one year.
It is being alleged that
the man was caught while
desecrating the Sikh religious
holy book, however,
an official confirmation
about it is still awaited.
As per the images that
have surfaced on social
media, it is possible that
the man was tortured
before he was brutally
killed, and the incident has
sent shockwaves all
around.
Terrorist involved in shooting J&K
cop killed in Srinagar encounter
Srinagar. A terrorist, involved in the murder
of a Jammu and Kashmir Police officer
in Srinagar, was killed in an encounter
between terrorists and security forces at
Srinagar district on Friday, officials said.
"Killer of martyr PSI Arshid killed in
Bemina encounter," police tweeted quoting
IG, Kashmir, Vijay Kumar.
The encounter ensued after a joint team
of the police and the army, which cordoned
off the area for a search operation
on the basis of specific information about
presence of terrorists, came under fire
from the hiding terrorists and retaliated.
On September 12, Sub-Inspector
Arshid Ahmad was shot dead from a close
range in Khanyar area of Srinagar.
This is the second encounter in
Kashmir on Friday. Earlier, one terrorist
involved in a recent civilian killing was
gunned down in Pulwama district.
Identified as Shahid Basir Sheikh from
Srinagar, he was said to be involved in the
killing of Mohammad Shafi Dar, 45, a resident
of SD Colony, Batmalloo near his
residence on October 2.
including a youth who died on
the spot. The deceased was
identified as Gaurav Agarwal,
21. The Superintendent of
Police told the media that the
reckless driver was caught by
the people and thrashed badly.
A huge quantity of ganja was
also found in the vehicle, which
was set on fire by the enraged
people. However, a police officer
said that there were two
people in the car - Radheshyam
Vishwakarma, 21, and
Shishupal Shahu, both from
Madhya Pradesh. Both have
been arrested. The incident created
anger among the local people,
who, along with the body
of the killed youth, blocked the
Gumla-Katni highway. A police
official said the situation was
critical as more and more people
from nearby areas gathered
there. "Somehow, we managed
to control the situation. But
people are still there on the
spot. Senior officials have also
reached there," he added.