Groups clash outside gurdwara; 5 hurt

Two groups clashed outside a gurdwara in Jawwadi village this afternoon.

Two groups clashed outside a gurdwara in Jawwadi village this afternoon. Gunshots rent the air and eyewitnesses said stones and bricks,too,could be seen flying around. The clash,which took place at about 2 pm,left five people injured and they were admitted to Dayanand Medical College and Hospital. The police were still in the process of registering an FIR at the time of filing of this report.

When contacted,ADCP 3 Jasdev Singh Sidhu said,We have been told that these persons had gathered at the gurdwara to attend the bhog ceremony of a village resident when the firing took place. We are investigating the entire issue and are in the process of recording the statements of the injured.

The injured have been identified as Rajwinder Singh,Harpreet Singh,Gurpinder Singh,Gopal Mahajan and Rajesh Majahan. None of them received any bullet injuries. Locals said the clash was a result of old rivalries between the Manjit-Satwinder Jawaddi group and the Assa group. While the Jawwadi group is backed by Congress as Manjit Jawadi is a local Congress leader,the Assa group is reported to be backed by local SAD(B) Councillor Tanvir Singh Dhaliwal.

The injured belong to the Jawaddi group. The two groups have had five clashes in the last two to three years. The police,however,questioned the theory that violence was a result of group rivalries. I have been here for nearly five months and have not heard about any such rivalries, said Sidhu. There are no reports of brewing tension in this area due to these groups.

Meanwhile,Tanvit Singh Dhaliwal,who was present at the bhog,said,We were sitting inside the Gurdwara when we heard gun shots. I do not know exactly what happened but have been told that some members of the two groups were standing outside the gurdwara when they had a heated argument. Soon gunshots were fired and stones pelted. By the time we reached the spot,we could see members of both the groups fleeing from the spot. Dhaliwal denied having any relation with the Assa group.

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