AAP workers call off protest as cops bow

PATIALA: Patiala unit of Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) on Friday called off the relay hunger strike it was observing in front of the district secretariat after the police assured its members to add non-bailable sections in the FIR registered against Akali workers who allegedly assaulted AAP members at the polling booth in Jalalabad village of Patiala parliamentary constituency.

AAP leaders also said that the police had agreed to charge SAD councillor Rajinder Singh Virk, who is accused of leading the attack on Patiala's AAP candidate, Dr Dharamvira Gandhi, on polling day, as per the medico-legal report.

The party members had on Thursday held a protest before starting an indefinite chain hunger strike to demand registration of attempt to murder case against the assailants. Besides Dr Gandhi, party's candidates from Ludhiana, Bathinda, Sangrur and Anandpur Sahib parliamentary constituencies respectively senior Supreme Court lawyer H S Phoolka, Jassi Jasraj, Bhagwant Mann and Himmat Singh Shergill participated in the protest against the district administration.

The party, however, on Friday backtracked from its initial demand of registration of an attempt to murder case against the accused and called off the protest after the superintendent of police (detective) H S Teja assured that non-bailable sections would be added in the FIR registered against Akali workers accused to attacking AAP workers at Jalalabad.

"Moreover, police have also assured us that charges would be added in the FIR registered against the SAD councilor Rajinder Singh Virk as per the medico-legal report of Dr Gandhi", said Dr Balbir Singh, who was the election campaign manager of Dr Gandhi.