The Chandigarh District Court has framed charges against 10 leaders of the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) in connection with a protest that took place in Chandigarh around three years ago. The orders have cleared the way for a full trial, which is scheduled to begin on January 17th.The case relates to clashes with police personnel and the violation of orders issued by the District Magistrate.
AAP MLA from Fazilka, Narender Pal Singh, is among those who will face trial. The other accused leaders are Harbhajan Singh, Dr Sunny Singh Ahluwalia, Prem Kumar Garg, Prabhjot Kaur, Parminder Singh, Pratap Singh, Gurvinder Singh, Kamaljeet Singh and Satwant Singh.
The court has directed that the trial will continue under IPC sections 147, 149, 323, 332, 353 and 188, which relate to unlawful assembly, causing injuries, obstructing public servants from duty and disobeying official orders.
The court has also taken a strict view of the repeated absence of four accused. Saranpal Singh, Gurdeep Singh, Ghulam Mohammad and Subhash Sehgal have been declared proclaimed offenders after they failed to appear before the court despite multiple opportunities.
The incident dates to February 12, 2023, when a large group of AAP leaders and party workers gathered outside the Punjab BJP office in Sector 37, Chandigarh, to hold a protest. During the demonstration, slogans were raised against the Central government, with protesters accusing it of favouring companies linked to industrialist Gautam Adani.
Before the protest, the Chandigarh Administration had made heavy security arrangements at the site and imposed Section 144 of the CrPC, which bans unlawful assembly. Even with these restrictions in place, the crowd moved towards the barricades put up by the police, which led to a confrontation between the protesters and security personnel.
The situation quickly escalated, and clashes broke out. Several AAP leaders and police personnel were injured during the incident. Police stated that some protesters pushed and assaulted policemen and threw stones, forcing the authorities to use water cannons to bring the situation under control and disperse the crowd.
An FIR was registered at the Sector 39 police station, following the protest. The charges included blocking government officials from performing their duties, attacking police personnel and breaking the prohibitory orders of the District Magistrate.
After reviewing the case records and listening to arguments from both sides, the court said there was enough material to frame charges. A detailed court order is expected in the coming days.