A rocket-propelled grenade was fired at a police station in Punjab’s border district of Tarn Taran triggering concerns all around with DGP Gaurav Yadav describing the attack as a strategy of the neighbouring nation to bleed India by a thousand cuts.
Soon after the attack, the Opposition demanded Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann’s resignation, saying he had failed in maintaining law and order in the border State.
The Punjab DGP said that according to preliminary information, it is military-grade hardware and suspected it to have been smuggled from across the border. There was no casualty in Friday night’s RPG attack — the second in the State in the last seven months — police said. The grenade damaged some windowpanes of a building.
“There is a clear indication that it is a strategy of the neighbouring nation to bleed India by a thousand cuts,” the DGP said. In coordination with the BSF and Central agencies, the Punjab Police will investigate the matter, he said.
Some unidentified people fired the projectile which hit the Saanjh Kendra adjoining the Sarhali police station on the Amritsar-Bathinda highway on Friday night, police said.
Yadav, who visited the site, said that according to a preliminary investigation, the grenade was fired by using an RPG from the highway at 11.22 pm and it hit the Suvidha Centre of the Sarhali police station. “We have registered an FIR under UAPA (Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act) in this regard,” the DGP told the media here. Yadav said police have recovered the rocket launcher and propeller.
“We are investigating technically and forensically. We are collecting clues from the scene of the crime to reconstruct what happened,” the DGP said. A forensic team and a squad of the army have reached the site. The DGP said that the “cowardly attack” was carried out at night as the “enemy nation was feeling rattled” after the seizure of huge quantities of heroin and cache of arms and ammunition in the last one month which were sent through drones.
“This year alone, there were more than 200 drone crossings and in the last one month, several drones were intercepted, heroin, weapons and ammunition seized,” he said, adding, “It appears that our enemy nation was feeling rattled and to distract this, the cowardly attack was carried out at night,” the DGP said.
The police are exploring all angles and theories. The handlers and operators in Pakistan and elements which were in touch in Europe and North America and their links are also being probed to arrest the real perpetrators, he said. The DGP further said the movement of drones has increased, especially in Tarn Taran and Amritsar, and last month many drones were shot down.
Shiromani Akali Dal chief Sukhbir Singh Badal said, “This is 2nd time in 6 months police building attacked with rocket launcher in Punjab. It is direct result of the AAP Govt’s apathy in maintaining law & order & allowing narco-terrorism to raise its head again. @BhagwantMann should realise gravity of situation & take concrete measures.”
BJP national general secretary Tarun Chugh alleged that the AAP Government had completely failed in maintaining law and order. Referring to the RPG attack and also the recent murder of a cloth merchant in Jalandhar, Chugh said Mann should seek an apology from the people of the State for “failing” in discharging his responsibilities.
Punjab Congress chief Amrinder Singh Raja Warring dubbed the incident quite serious. “Ominous signals. This is quite serious. Enemies of peace have the audacity to attack police stations. It does not portend well for Punjab. We have to fight against it together. Govt at the Centre and State have to take the lead. Can’t take such threats lightly,” he tweeted.
