A court in Mansa on Thursday sent activist Lakhvir Singh, known as Lakha Sidhana, and Mohanjit Sheron to four-day police remand, The Tribune and Punjab News reported. The two were produced in court two days after police detained them at the Mansa protest site.
Source: The Tribune
This is a new development in the case first reported on October 27, when Sidhana was reportedly detained at the Mansa Jhota morcha and Bhana Sidhu's detention was reported but unconfirmed. Read the earlier detention story
Why they were detained
Sidhana and Sheron were among those detained on Tuesday after a confrontation at Ramdittewala Chowk, where police stopped Daljit Singh's family and villagers who were taking his body towards the protest site and took the body away for a post-mortem, The Indian Express, Babushahi and BBC News Punjabi reported. Mansa SSP Vaibhav Chaudhary said Sidhana was held for allegedly trying to disturb law and order. Police alleged that members of the crowd attacked a police party, that three police personnel were injured, and that an attempt-to-murder case was being registered over the clash. These are police allegations; the accused have not been convicted of any offence.
Daljit Singh, 35, of Bhamme Kalan village, died in circumstances the two sides describe differently. His family alleges he died of a drug overdose. Police say the body was dumped by the roadside from a vehicle and are treating the death as murder; the SSP said three main accused in that case had been rounded up. The cause of death will be clear only after the post-mortem and viscera reports, which are awaited.
Protests continue in Mansa
The detentions took place against the backdrop of the Insaaf Committee's morcha, running since the October 13 killing of anti-drug activist Parvinder Singh Jhota. The committee has demanded the release of those detained, and farmer union BKU (Ugrahan) held protests at 40 locations across Punjab, Mirror Now reported on Thursday. Former chief minister Charanjit Singh Channi joined protesters at Tinkoni in Mansa, and the committee has announced a gherao of ruling-party MLAs on October 31.
Source: Mirror Now
Thursday's remand reports named only Sidhana and Sheron. At the end of the four-day police remand, the two are due to be produced before the court again, which will decide on any further custody. No statement from Sidhana or Sheron on the remand had been reported at the time of publishing.