BJP leader booked for farmer’s death amid protest against Patiala Lok Sabha candidate Preneet Kaur

The Punjab Police have booked Bharatiya Janata Party leader Harwinder Singh Harpalpur for culpable homicide not amounting to murder in connection with the death of a farmer during a protest against party leader Preneet Kaur on Saturday, reported The Indian Express.

Sixty-year-old Surinder Pal Singh died after he fell to the ground during the protest against Kaur, who is the BJP’s Lok Sabha candidate from Patiala. Polling in the state is scheduled to take place on June 1.

A former Congress leader, Kaur is the wife of former Punjab Chief Minister Amarinder Singh, who left the Opposition party in 2022 and joined the BJP.

The first information report was filed on a complaint by Surinder Pal Singh’s nephew, Resham Singh.

While Preneet Kaur was walking towards the campaigning venue on Saturday, Surinder Pal Singh along with other farmers tried to confront her and voice their demands, the complaint said, reported The Hindu.

However, Harpalpur and some unidentified men entered into an argument with the protestors and allegedly started pushing them. It was during this scuffle that Surinder Pal Singh fell to the ground and suffered injuries to his head. He was taken to a hospital where he succumbed to his injuries.

The police have booked Harpalpur, nephew of Shiromani Akali Dal leader Prem Singh Chandumajra, and two unidentified persons under section 304 of the Indian Penal Code, reported The Indian Express.

Farmers in Punjab have been protesting against the BJP government at the Centre since February at state’s Shambhu border with Haryana to seek a law guaranteeing a minimum support price for agricultural commodities and the implementation of the MS Swaminathan Commission Report’s wider recommendations on farming in India.

The farmers had aimed to protest in Delhi, but the BJP government in Haryana had blocked the state border and halted their movement into the capital.

Kisan Mazdoor Morcha coordinator Sarwan Singh Pandher on Sunday demanded immediate arrest of the BJP leader, reported The Indian Express.

“We have now given two days’ ultimatum to the police [to arrest ],” he said. “If they do not arrest him by May 7, we will take out a morcha and sit outside former CM Captain Amarinder Singh’s Moti Bagh palace. We are giving a call to all farmers, labourers and employees to gather at the spot on May 8.”

Besides Surinder Pal Singh, a 55-year-old farmer named Balwinder Kaur also died of cardiac arrest at Shambhu railway station on Saturday during the ongoing farmers’ agitation. So far, 19 farmers have died amid the farmers’ protest since February, reported The Indian Express.

Meanwhile, Preneet Kaur on Saturday expressed condolences to Surinder Pal Singh’s family on his demise. “Me and my family have always stood for the betterment and concerns of farmers and will continue to do so,” Kaur said in a video posted on X.

Also read: Why farmers from Punjab and Haryana are marching to Delhi again