PUNJAB POLICE HELP 30,000 DERA FOLLOWERS REACH HOME

RAJPURA(PATIALA): Punjab Police on Friday claimed to have helped more than 30,000 Dera Sacha Sauda followers, evicted from Panchkula after large scale violence, to different parts of the state and its neighbouring Haryana besides Rajasthan.

For the police personnel, who were deployed at Banur and Rajpura to keep tabs on law and order situation, it was it was a complete role reversal by the evening.

A total of 1,000 personnel worked through the night under supervision of inspector general (IG), Patiala Zone, AS Rai, providing vehicles, first aid to many dera followers who were beaten up and were without food, water and money. To speed up their evacuation on the highway, the police imposed curfew in Patiala and Sangrur.

Most of the followers, who were victims of violence, said they were misled by the dera authorities that a religious cogeneration of dera was goping to be held in Panchkula. As many as 300 buses and 200 other vehicles were used to move more than 20,000 followers, said AS Rai.

The rush of the followers started after 8pm, and no one was ready to take them in their vehicles Most of the followers were from Sangrur, Patiala, Mansa, Muktsar and Bathinda in Punjab, Kaithal, Ambala, and Kuruskshetra and Sirsa in Haryana and some parts of Rajasthan. “We took services of truckers and other vehicles before PRTC sent us around 150 buses. The buses were used for the elderly and women while trucks carried youngsters,” said Krishan Kumar Painthey, DSP Rajpura.