Punjab Bandh Today: 7-Hour Shutdown Over Sikh Prisoners’ Release, Highways And Rail Routes May Be Hit

A seven-hour Punjab Bandh called by the Qaumi Insaaf Morcha is likely to disrupt normal life across the state on Friday as protesters demand the release of Sikh prisoners.

The morcha, backed by several religious, social, farmers’, employees’ organisations and Sikh political parties, has announced plans to block highways and railway tracks and shut commercial establishments between 7 am and 2 pm.

Schools, colleges and exams

Punjab Education Secretary Sonali Giri said no government directions had been issued to close educational institutions.

However, the Association of Private Unaided Schools and the Federation of Private Schools and Associations of Punjab have advised their members to keep institutions closed on Friday, citing the safety of students and teachers.

State- and Central-run colleges and universities have not announced a holiday.

Panjab University, meanwhile, has postponed exams scheduled for Friday to September 10 to avoid inconvenience to students.

The Qaumi Insaaf Morcha has been holding an indefinite sit-in at the Mohali-Chandigarh border since January 7, 2023, seeking the release of Sikh prisoners.

The bandh was announced on August 15 after Chandigarh Police used tear gas and water cannons to disperse protesters who attempted to break through barricades during a march towards the Punjab governor’s residence.

Hospitals, airports and weddings exempt

Morcha leaders have appealed to traders, shopkeepers, transporters, commercial establishments and educational institutions to support the shutdown.

They have, however, said essential services and certain categories of travel will be exempt.

“Transportation, shops and other commercial outlets will remain shut from 7 am to 2 pm. Hospitals and chemist shops will remain open. Ambulances, funeral vans and vehicles being used for weddings will be exempted. No person or commuter in an emergency will be stopped,” morcha convener Pal Singh France said.

He said the protest was not intended to harass the public or disrupt daily life but to seek justice for Sikh prisoners who, according to the morcha, have spent decades in jail and have also been denied parole.

SGPC, Sikh groups back Punjab shutdown

The bandh has received support from the Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee (SGPC), Delhi Sikh Gurdwara Management Committee, farmers’ organisations such as the Kisan Mazdoor Sangharsh Committee, employees’ unions and several Sikh political parties.

The SGPC has also postponed its executive committee meeting, scheduled at its Amritsar headquarters, to August 22.

SGPC president Harjinder Singh Dhami said all SGPC offices and institutions would remain closed on August 21 in support of the bandh.

He said the SGPC had consistently worked for the release of Sikh prisoners and would continue supporting peaceful movements seeking their release.

Who are the Sikh prisoners whose release is being sought?

The morcha is seeking premature release or commutation of sentences for several prisoners, including Jagtar Singh Hawara, Balwant Singh Rajoana, Paramjit Singh Bheora and Jagtar Singh Tara, who were convicted in connection with the 1995 assassination of former Punjab chief minister Beant Singh.

Other prisoners whose release is being sought include terror convicts Gurdeep Singh Khera and Davinderpal Singh Bhullar.

Hawara was sentenced to death in 2007, with his sentence later commuted to life imprisonment in 2010. Rajoana was also sentenced to death in 2007. Bheora and Tara are serving life sentences, while Bhullar’s death sentence was commuted to life imprisonment in 2014.

Recently, Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann met Governor Gulab Chand Kataria and backed a 10-day parole for Hawara so that he could meet his ailing mother.