National highways blocked in Jalandhar, SBS Nagar
JALANDHAR: National highways were blocked in Jalandhar and SBS Nagar on Sunday in response to the nationwide bandh call given by Bhim Army leader Chandrashekhar Azad in protest against the Supreme Court ruling that states were not bound to provide reservation in government jobs and quota in promotion.
The protesters also opposed the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) and the National Register for Citizens (NRC).
The Bhim Army was joined by various other Dalit organisations while members of some Muslim and Sikh outfits also took part in the protest.
The protesters blocked Jalandhar-Amritsar highway near Lamba Pind Chowk, Jalandhar Hoshiapur highway near Adampur and Bhogpur towns and Jalandhar-Moga highway from Nakodar Chowk to Lambra village for more than three hours, leading to traffic jam at several places. Meanwhile, movement of buses and trains remained normal throughout the day while majority of shops remained closed due to Sunday.
The protesters demanded that benefits of reservation in government jobs and promotions should not be withdrawn at any cost.
They also demanded rollback of the Citizenship Amendment Act . Bhim Army leader Amarjit Virdi said reservation must continue till all sections of society come on an equal socio-economic level. Dalit and Muslim outfits also blocked the Jalandhar Chandigarh highway in Shaheed Bhagat Singh Nagar for about one hour. Peaceful protests were also held in Kapurthala and Hoshiarpur districts. A similar protest was held in Amritsar also.
SARNA JOINS PROTEST
former Delhi Sikh Gurdwara Management Committee chief Paramjit Singh Sarna, who was on his way back to Delhi after a visit to Gurdwara Nanakana Sahib in Pakistan, joined the protesters at Lamba Pind.
AILING WOMAN DIES AMID TRAFFIC JAM
Meanwhile, Gurmeet Kaur, 80, a resident of Dalla village of Bhogpur in Jalandhar, died after she was caught in a traffic jam while being taken in a car to a hospital after a paralytic attack, police said. After strenuous efforts, the cops made way for the car through traffic jam at Bhogpur, but the woman, grandmother of Dalla sarpanch Charanjit Singh, died on way to hospital.