An uneasy calm prevailed in Ghuman town after followers of Nurmahal-based sect Divya Jyoti Jagriti Sansthan (DJJS) and members of Guru Granth Sahib Satkar committee clashed, leaving 10 injured.
Senior police officers, including the Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) Opinderjit Singh Ghuman, camped in the township throughout the day to ensure peace. Ghuman said that adequate police force had been deployed in the area, and the situation was well under control.
DJJS followers were holding an anti-drug awareness camp in the town on late Saturday evening when Satkar committee members, allegedly attacked them without provocation. Initially, the two sides engaged in verbal feud which worsened in few minutes leading to a free-for-all moment.
As many as 10 people of the DJJS were seriously injured following the alleged use of sharp-edged weapons. They were taken to the Batala Civil Hospital where doctors, keeping in view the serious nature of injuries referred them to Amritsar hospital.
The police informed that the Satkar committee members were angry over the DJJS followers’ decision to visit the homes of addicts claiming that their privacy would be intruded.
DJJS members alleged that when they went to the Ghuman police station to lodge a complaint, they were again attacked with swords and other sharp-edged weapons.
A case under various Sections of the Indian Penal Code (IPC), including 307 (attempt to murder), 323 (voluntarily causing hurt), 324 (causing injuries using sharp-edged weapons), 148 (rioting) and 149 (unlawful assembly), has been registered at Ghuman police station against 20 Satkar committee members on the basis of a statement given by DJJS follower Kuwlinder Singh.