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Punjab witnessed a shutdown on Thursday following the murder of young man Parminder Singh Jhota in Mansa, with organisations staging protests and enforcing closures at several locations across the state after a video of the killing went viral on social media.
In Amritsar, protesters blocked roads at multiple locations, disrupting traffic and leaving several children and three ambulances carrying patients stuck in traffic jams. Police intervened to clear the roads and ensure the safe passage of ambulances. DCP Jugraj Singh said that several children and patients, including those in three ambulances, were caught in the traffic congestion. Police personnel and the duty magistrate appealed to the protesters to clear the roads peacefully. According to the DCP, while most protesters heeded the administration's appeal and cleared the path, 5 to 7 individuals continued to create obstructions. Despite repeated warnings, when they refused to comply, the police detained them. The DCP said, "We made a lot of requests and everyone listened. There were a lot of kids stuck in the vehicles behind us. There were many patients, and three ambulances were stuck back there. So everyone else agreed to our request and cleared the whole road. There were about five to seven people who were just trying to create a blockade for everyone. We first requested them peacefully. Then we brought our duty magistrate along and requested them again, but they didn't listen." DCP Jugraj Singh stated that the police's highest priority was to provide a safe passage for the patients in the ambulances. He added that had any harm come to a patient, the responsibility would have fallen on the administration. Traffic was subsequently restored, and the police reiterated their commitment to treating everyone equally while maintaining law and order and ensuring public safety. This comes amid protests across Punjab over the killing of Jhota, an anti-drug activist from Mansa district who was allegedly shot by a medical shop owner on Tuesday. He was taken to a hospital with bullet injuries but later succumbed to them. Several farmers' and workers' organisations have called for a statewide Punjab bandh on Thursday, demanding accountability from the state government over the killing and action against those responsible. (ANI)
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