Political leaders pay tributes to IPS officer Y Puran Kumar; Udit Raj announces rally for justice
Haryana Governor Ashim Kumar Ghosh visits ASI Sandeep Lather’s family, announces Rs 2.5-lakh aid.
Former Delhi MP Udit Raj announced a rally at Delhi’s Ramlila Maidan on November 30, demanding a fair and transparent investigation. (File Photo/@Dr_Uditraj) Several political leaders, including Punjab Assembly Speaker Kultar Singh Sandhwan and Haryana Congress president Rao Narender Singh, attended a condolence meeting held in Panchkula on Sunday to pay tributes to IPS officer Y Puran Kumar, who allegedly killed himself on October 7.
Former Delhi MP Udit Raj, who also attended the gathering, announced a rally at Delhi’s Ramlila Maidan on November 30, demanding a fair and transparent investigation into the circumstances surrounding Kumar’s alleged death by suicide. “The voice of Dalits will not be allowed to be silenced,” the Congress leader said.
Udit Raj, who serves as the national chairman of the Unorganised Workers and Employees Congress, said the issue transcended personal grief. “This is no longer just the fight of Amneet P Kumar’s family—it is the fight of the Bahujan Samaj,” he said, referring to the deceased officer’s IAS officer wife. “We will take this struggle to Delhi and hold a rally on November 30 to seek justice for Y Puran Kumar.”
Calling for a thorough investigation, he added, “Why was Y Puran Kumar compelled to take his own life? This must be fully probed. The suicide of ASI Sandeep Lathar should also be investigated by a Special Investigation Team under the supervision of a high court judge. Only then can the conspiracy be exposed.”
Kultar Singh Sandhwan voiced concern over caste-based discrimination. “This is our country too, and this is our Constitution. Why must individuals holding such high positions face atrocities based on caste? This must stop. The guilty must be punished after a proper government inquiry. This is the voice of India, not just of Dalits,” he said.
Responding to the call for a November 30 rally, Sandhwan said, “If justice is denied, then a struggle must be launched.”
Rao Narender Singh echoed the demand for justice, urging authorities to ensure accountability.
Among those present at the condolence meeting were Rajya Sabha MP Randeep Singh Surjewala of the Congress, Punjab Finance Minister Harpal Singh Cheema, and Congress MPs Amar Singh (Fatehgarh Sahib) and Varun Chaudhary (Ambala). B B Bharti, officer on special duty to Haryana Chief Minister Nayab Singh Saini, paid tribute on the chief minister’s behalf.
Several senior bureaucrats and police officers from Haryana and Punjab also attended the gathering.
The 2001 batch IPS officer, who was an inspector-general of police, was found dead with a gunshot wound at home in Chandigarh Sector 11. The police recovered an eight-page note detailing years of alleged caste-based discrimination, harassment, and character assassination targeted at him. In the note, Puran Kumar named nine serving and one retired IPS officers and three retired IAS officers, including Director-General of Police Shatrujeet Kapoor and Superintendent of Police Narinder Bijarniya, as having led him to take the extreme step.
Amneet P Kumar, Puran Kumar’s wife, was in Japan at the time as part of a Haryana Government delegation led by Saini. She returned on October 8 and lodged a complaint with the Chandigarh Police seeking action against all those named in her husband’s “final note”.
Meanwhile, Governor Ashim Kumar Ghosh visited the house of Sandeep Lather in Jind on Sunday to pay his respects. He also announced financial assistance of Rs 2.5 lakh towards the education of the deceased assistant sub-inspector.
ASI Sandeep, who was with the Rohtak police’s cyber cell, was found dead with a gunshot wound to his head at his maternal uncle’s farm in a village in Rohtak on October 14. His death added a twist to the alleged suicide of Puran Kumar. In a “final note”, ASI Sandeep held Puran Kumar, his wife Amneet P Kumar, and two others responsible for his death.
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