Several Hindu organizations in Punjab’s Jagraon staged a protest on Monday demanding the arrest of Jaspal Singh Heran, the chief editor of a Punjabi daily Rozana Pehredar, for using objectionable language against Hindu gods and goddesses through his newspaper and social media platforms.
Heran’s Punjabi daily had carried an article last week criticizing the former deputy chief minister Sukhbir Singh Badal for visiting Mata Chintpurni temple in Himachal Pradesh on the occasion of the ongoing Hindu festival of Navratri.
However, to do so, Rozana Pehredar used derogatory language for the Hindu festival and the goddess. ‘In hopes for a victory, Sukhbir abandoned his own father and went to someone else’s mother,’ read the headline of the article.
@CHARANJITCHANNI @MogaPolice @PMOIndia @AmitShah @ZeeNews @DGPPunjabPolice plz take action this racist newspaper pehredar and its baised reporter jaspal singh heran for hearting religious sentiments of Hindu’s at large… pic.twitter.com/gkJSyNdXWt
— Gopal Krishan Bansal (@GopalKb1980) October 8, 2021
The article further attacked Badal for listening to ‘Hindu masters’ and visiting a temple for ‘political gains.’ He further denounced Badal and said he should not call himself a Sikh if he wishes to visit Hindu temples.
The Hindu organizations took strong objection to this and carried out demonstrations throughout the city against Heran who is said to be a repeat offender.
The Jagraon police has booked Jaspal Singh Heran on the complaint of Amit Sharma, general secretary of Hindu Ekta Manch, Jagraon. However, no action has been taken against Heran as yet.
The protestors have issued a two-day ultimatum for arresting Heran. The stir will intensify if the demands are not met, warned the Hindu organizations.
Sikh organizations come out in support of Heran
Tensions prevailed in Jagraon on Monday after Hindu protestors marched towards the office of Gurdial Singh, Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP), Ludhiana rural and announced to gherao the office.
The police resorted to lathicharge to disperse the crowd. Later, the SSP held a meeting with 11 members of the organizations and assured them of Heran’s arrest.
However, the situation got tensed after as many as 20 Sikh organizations from all over Punjab came out in support of Heran. They too held a demonstration outside SSP’s office demanding the FIR against Heran be quashed. At that time the Hindu organizations were protesting at a railway bridge and were stopped from moving ahead fearing clashes between the two groups.
Heavy security was deployed at the bridge to bar the Hindu organizations from marching forward towards the SSP’s office.
Only after the Sikh organizations handed over their letter to the SSP, were the Hindu organizations permitted to move forward.
Habitual offender
As per the protestors and netizens, Heran is a habitual offender infamous for making derogatory remarks against Hindus and even India on his social media pages.
Raj Bhardwaj who was a part of the protests said that the accused was still using objectionable language against Hindu Gods on social networking sites.
Vishal Joshi who is supposedly a part of the Indian National Congress (INC) also tweeted against Heran and through a Tweet informed that no action had been taken against the journalist for hurting the sentiments of Hindus.
Jaspal Singh heran had done so many news against the religious , country . On 15 aug 2021 he also publish news against India .and Punjab . And complaint is still pending at ADCP Office For FIR ..
— Vishal Joshi (@joshiontop) October 8, 2021
ਇਹ ਬੰਦਾ ਜਾਣ ਭੂਜ਼ ਕੇ ਪੰਜਾਬ ਤੇ ਦੇਸ਼ ਦਾ ਮਾਹੌਲ ਖਰਾਬ ਕਰਨਾ ਚਾਣਦਾ ਹੈ । pic.twitter.com/ShlsrjYf6o
Heran has locked his Facebook profile for now.
Rupnagar, Punjab: Sikh men disrupt Ramleela event, abuse Hindu Gods
In another incident, some Sikh men had reportedly disrupted the Ramleela event organised by the Sanatan Dharm Ramleela committee in Rupnagar, Punjab on Saturday night.
As per reports, the Ramleela was underway when some Sikh men arrived with sticks and started abusing Hindu Gods, the organisers and created a nuisance. Chief Director Rakesh Sehgal and President of the committee Manohar Lal Kapoor had informed Jagran that the committee members tried to pacify the Sikh group but they refused to budge and continued their tirade.
The Sikh men reportedly accused the committee of being ‘BJP supporters’ and continued their rant against Hindu Gods, including Lord Ram, deeply hurting the devotees present. Due to their threats and nuisance, the Ramleela event was stopped for several hours.
The event organisers have stated that despite complaints, police had not taken any strong steps against the goons.
Growing Hindu-Sikh tensions as Khalistanis find new ways to influence
In recent years, there have been numerous instances that point towards a slow revival of Sikh extremism in Punjab and abroad. The Aam Aadmi Party, during the 2017 Punjab elections and even before that, was seen trying to trigger Khanlistani elements for its political gains.
In 2014, a number of pro-Khalistani outfits had declared their support for AAP ahead of the 2014 Lok Sabha election. A prominent AAP leader and Lok Sabha candidate Jarnail Singh was seen addressing pro-Khalistan rallies in London.
In 2018, in their most overt support for Khalistan yet, AAP MLA and Leader of Opposition Sukhpal Singh Khaira released a statement in support of Referendum 2020. Referendum 2020, for those unfamiliar, is a Khalistani terrorist plot seeking a ‘referendum’ for the secession of Punjab from India.
In the recent ‘farmer protest, AAP’s activities had followed the directions given in the Greta toolkit. The emboldening of pro-Khalistan elements was most prominent when the Indian national flag was disrespected and an alien flag was hoised atop the Red Fort on Republic Day, 2021.
As the politics around ‘farmer protests’ gets murkier, the Khalistani hand keeps getting more and more prominent. Many pro-Khalistani groups in India and abroad have been involved in the ‘farmer protests’ and as Punjab elections approach, the openly Hinduphobic side of Khalistani elements is becoming clearer too. To antagonise the ruling BJP and the Modi government, Khalistani elements, supported by Pakistan, now seem to be working on spreading hatred against Hindus.
