It’s set to be a chaotic day on tricity roads, especially the Chandigarh-Mohali border, as right after the official Independence Day celebrations come to a close, members of the Qaumi Insaaf Morcha are set to march towards the Punjab governor’s residence in Sector 6 with black flags.
Multiple instances of violence and clashes with police have been reported even after that. To stop them, heavy barricading has been done in the Southern part of the city – near Jail Road and Yadavindra Public School road. The morcha’s previous efforts to enter the city have largely ended in violence.
Chandigarh police have also ramped up security deployment outside the governor’s residence with 100 police personnel set to remain stationed on both roads leading to it. During a march on February 8, 2023, protesters clashed with the police forces on the Sector 52/53 dividing road after being stopped from marching towards Chandigarh, leaving at least 33 cops injured. UT police had then booked six persons and put around 30 persons on the suspect list. Most importantly, the YPS Chowk has been blocked by the protesters, who put up their tents here, since January 7, 2023.
“While the rest of the country celebrates Independence Day, many Sikhs continue to feel deprived of freedom because of the prolonged incarceration of prisoners,” said Gurcharan.
