Chandigarh: Punjab BJP president Kewal Singh Dhillon alleged that Punjab Police cremated the body of Sanamdeep Singh, a 23-year-old Dalit resident of Kanoi village in Sangrur district, without the consent or presence of his family members after he died by suicide on Sept 26.
“The incident reflects the deteriorating law-and-order situation in Punjab and the AAP govt’s failure to safeguard the rights of Dalit families,” Dhillon alleged.
Dhillon was accompanied by Sangrur BJP district president Daman Bajwa, Sanamdeep’s brother Ravi Singh, father Paramjeet Singh, and cousin Vikramjeet Singh, who recounted the family’s version of events.
“Punjab is passing through a difficult phase. We are receiving regular complaints of atrocities and discrimination against Dalits under the AAP govt. Even though Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann hails from Sangrur, such incidents continue to be reported from the district,” Dhillon alleged.
Accusing the police of acting under the influence of a sitting minister, Dhillon said, “The law-and-order situation has deteriorated to such an extent that the victim’s last rites were not allowed to take place in his own village or in the presence of his family. The police cremated the body without the family’s consent and even abducted the victim’s mother.”
He further alleged that the state govt had turned a blind eye to the matter and said the BJP had urged senior police officers to conduct a thorough probe. The party has also sought information regarding the whereabouts of the victim’s mother and demanded that she be reunited with her family.
According to the family, Sanamdeep worked as a stone mason and had been involved in a long-standing dispute with the village sarpanch, whom they described as being associated with the AAP. The family alleged that continued pressure and harassment linked to the dispute drove him to consume a poisonous substance at his home. He later died while undergoing treatment at Sangrur Civil Hospital.
Vikramjeet Singh claimed the dispute dated back to 2019 when Ravi Singh’s mobile phone allegedly fell near the sarpanch. “When Ravi approached him to retrieve the phone, the sarpanch used casteist slurs and assaulted him. Instead of acting against the sarpanch, the police later booked seven members of our family in another case to pressure us into withdrawing the complaint. Sanamdeep also spent some time in jail in connection with that case,” he alleged.
The family further alleged that they had kept Sanamdeep’s body in the hospital mortuary for five days while peacefully protesting and demanding action against the sarpanch, including the registration of charges under the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act.
“Initially, the police refused to record our statements and kept asking us to provide proof. Later, they cremated our brother without our permission and in the absence of family members,” the family alleged.
Sangrur SSP Ravjot Grewal could not be reached for comment.
Courtesy : TOI
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