Social Media Activist Bhaana Sidhu of Punjab Released from Jail
Social Media Activist Bhaana Sidhu of Punjab Released from Jail
ਸੋਸ਼ਲ ਮੀਡੀਆ ਐਕਟੀਵਿਸਟ ਭਾਨਾ ਸਿੱਧੂ ਪੰਜਾਬ ਵਿੱਚ
भाना सिधू न्यूज़
Bhana Sidhu Case
The protesters said that they will assemble again in large numbers if Bhagwant Mann or his police tried to harass innocent people in the state.
By Rakesh Raman
After massive protests during the past couple of weeks in support of social media activist Bhaana Sidhu, the Punjab Government today (February 12) released him from jail.
After his release, Bhaana Sidhu said in a press conference that he was implicated by Punjab Police in multiple false cases because he has been criticizing the Bhagwant Mann government which is not fulfilling its poll promises.
Bhaana Sidhu – who is quite active on social media particularly YouTube – added that Punjab Police has threatened to file 21 more fabricated cases against him if he does not stop criticism of Punjab chief minister (CM) Bhagwant Mann. He claimed that he was tortured mercilessly when he was in police custody.
It is alleged that the police have filed a number of false cases to terrorize protesters who were going to demonstrate in front of Bhagwant Mann’s residence on February 3.
The excesses of Punjab Police can be assessed from the fact that the police cases included the names of Bhaana Sidhu’s brother, father, and even sisters who were not present at the protest site.
In an audio interview on February 9 with a local YouTube channel, a Punjab Police official who was investigating the case admitted that he mentioned the names of Bhaana Sidhu’s sisters in the case without knowing if they were part of the protest.
He added that he included the names of the women and other protesters in the FIR after hearing the incident from others and without holding any preliminary investigation.
In a video interaction on February 8, one of Bhaana Sidhu’s sisters claimed that she was attending her school as a teacher when the protest was taking place at Sangrur. Therefore, the police have deliberately implicated her in a false case to intimidate Bhaana Sidhu’s entire family.
Although the policeman said that the names of those who were not present at the protest site will be removed from the case, this irresponsible Punjab Police functionary has tarnished the image and careers of innocent people by making their names public and by falsely showing their involvement in a crime.
He – along with his Punjab Police colleagues who are responsible for this dereliction of duty and conspiracy against protesters – must be immediately removed from their jobs and prosecuted.
[ Also Read: ਕੀ ਭਗਵੰਤ ਮਾਨ ਪੰਜਾਬ ਵਿੱਚ ਅੱਤਵਾਦ ਦੇ ਦਿਨ ਵਾਪਸ ਲੈ ਕੇ ਆਉਣਗੇ? ]
[ Also Read: ਅਰਵਿੰਦ ਕੇਜਰੀਵਾਲ ਅਤੇ ਭਗਵੰਤ ਮਾਨ ਦਿੱਲੀ ਅਤੇ ਪੰਜਾਬ ਨੂੰ ਕਿਵੇਂ ਬਰਬਾਦ ਕਰਦੇ ਹਨ ]
[ Also Read: ਸੋਸ਼ਲ ਮੀਡੀਆ ਐਕਟੀਵਿਸਟ ਭਾਨਾ ਸਿੱਧੂ ਨੂੰ ਪੰਜਾਬ ਵਿੱਚ ਪੁਲਿਸ ਦੀ ਬੇਰਹਿਮੀ ਦਾ ਸਾਹਮਣਾ ਕਰਨਾ ਪਿਆ ]
[ Bhaana Sidhu News Videos: Police Detains Former Punjab CM Channi ]
[ Also Read: Bhaana Sidhu News: Protest Against Bhagwant Mann Govt in Punjab ]
[ Also Read: Bhaana Sidhu News: Punjab Police Allegedly Files False Cases ]
Earlier, thousands of people (men and women) protested on January 29 at Kot Duna village of Barnala district in Punjab, as Bhaana Sidhu has been facing police brutality for raising voice against corruption and misgovernance in the state.
Reports suggest that after getting court bail on January 25 in a case in which he was arrested by the Ludhiana police on January 20, a number of more cases have been registered against him so that he should not come out of the jail.
The supporters of Bhaana Sidhu allege that these are politically motivated cases filed at the behest of Punjab CM Bhagwant Mann whose incompetence was being exposed by Bhaana Sidhu.
They also allege that Bhaana Sidhu was beaten up mercilessly by police when he was in police custody.[ Click here and click here to watch related videos. ]
Last year in May also, a number of social activists and civil rights groups held a public rally in the Barnala region of Punjab and announced the launch of a statewide protest against the police excesses.
According to a Hindustan Times report of May 15, Bhaana Sidhu was arrested by the Barnala police when he came back from Australia where he had made some remarks against a Punjab policeman’s corruption.
A close aide of social activist Lakha Sidhana, Bhaana Sidhu has been raising his voice against the wrong policies and brutal actions of CM Bhagwant Mann.
The large protests of January 29 and February 3 by leading Punjab activists aimed to get Bhaana Sidhu released from police custody. Lakha Sidhana said that CM Bhagwant Mann is unleashing police terror against all those people who criticize his government.
Lakha Sidhana also said that Bhagwant Mann is behaving as a butcher, as he was responsible for sending youth Sikh leader Amritpal Singh and his companions to Dibrugarh jail of Assam where they have been incarcerated under the draconian National Security Act (NSA).
He added that Bhagwant Mann is not only attacking the freedom of speech rights of ordinary people in the state, but he is also becoming a major threat to the press freedom as local journalists are not allowed to work freely.
Last year, U.S. Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-MN) expressed deep concern over increasing human rights violations in Punjab, which has a large number of people belonging to the Sikh minority community. Ms. Omar urged the U.S. administration to protect the human rights of all, particularly the rights of all religious and ethnic minorities.
Today, with multiple protests by different sections of society, Punjab is witnessing a state of complete unrest while Bhagwant Mann – an illiterate politician who used to work in vulgar comedy shows – has completely failed in running the government.
As corruption is rampant in Punjab, top bureaucrats and police officials are working hand in glove with the corrupt politicians to unleash terror on the people of the state. All these government functionaries are operating as an organized criminal gang while the courts are not working effectively to stop lawlessness.
People accuse Bhagwant Mann of working as a puppet of his Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) leader Arvind Kejriwal and other AAP politicians in Delhi. The protesters say that they will not wait for 5 years until the next state election and will get the AAP government removed before the election if it fails to work honestly.
Bhagwant Mann and Kejriwal are squandering huge public money of Punjab Government on their excursions and advertisements in Punjab and other states to promote their party and their own images with fake publicity campaigns.
But the people of Punjab are suffering under unprecedented political corruption, lawlessness, unemployment, drug addiction, mafia culture, youth exodus, religious fundamentalism, and state oppression.
Therefore, Lakha Sidhana and his supporters said that they will intensify their agitation against the Bhagwant Mann government which is being controlled remotely from Delhi by Kejriwal.
The protesters said that they will assemble again in large numbers if Bhagwant Mann or his police tried to harass innocent people in the state.
By Rakesh Raman, who is a national award-winning journalist and social activist. He is the founder of the humanitarian organization RMN Foundation which is working in diverse areas to help the disadvantaged and distressed people in the society.
