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Prof Inder Singh Ghagga Arrested For His Three Years Old Article Written On Rakhri

spnadmin

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Prof Inder Singh Ghagga arrested for his three years old article written on Rakhri

It has taken me 3 days to find an English language version of this story that can be trusted. There has been steadfast coverage at Rozana Spokesman in Punjabi only.

So now I have one. Thank you singhstation.com

http://singhstation.net/2013/08/pro...egedly-hurting-religious-sentiments-of-sikhs/

The photo of this elderly man is heart-breaking. I am not going to post it.



Bagha Purana, (Moga), Aug 20 - Bagha Purana police of Moga district has registered a criminal case against Phul Mittal, editor of weekly ‘Malwa Mail’ and professor, author Inder Singh Ghagga, for allegedly hurting religious sentiments of the people.

The Moga district police last night arrested the author from his Patiala residence and produced him before the court of Judicial Magistrate Pratima Mahajan today.

As the police did not press for remand, the court sent him to judicial custody till September 4.

There was resentment among locals yesterday, as soon as the weekly was distributed which featured an article citing derogatory remarks against Hindu deities.

A protest was held in this regard in which the political parties and residents of the area demanded immediate arrest of the duo who were evading arrest.

Family members of Prof Inder Singh Ghagga, claimed on Wednesday that the piece was written three years ago and questioned the police action after a lapse of three years.

Alleging that the arrest of her father was “part of some conspiracy, known best to the authorities”, Ghagga’s daughter Navdeep Kaur, who is a UK resident and on a visit to her parental home, said the article was part of the book “Bigaani Dhi Praya Dhan,” which was published three years ago.

“It was available on the internet since then. It is beyond understanding why police have taken action on it three years after it was first published,” said Navdeep.

Moga police had arrested Ghagga, alleging that he had written a defamatory piece on Rakhri some time back, which provoked persons of a particular community to protest in Baghapurana town of Moga district on Tuesday.

Navdeep said Ghagga had gone to a private hospital due to a minor ailment and the police party took him away shortly after he returned from the hospital. Before taking him, police told them about the protests in Baghapurana, after a local paper published the article, she said.
 

spnadmin

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The entire story doesn't make sense Tejwant ji. Thanks for pointing out the geographical contradiction.

Someone or someone's with vested interests in seeing him jailed had to be behind this. The "hurting religious sentiments" clause of Section 295 has to be looked at closely. I have read it. Almost anything that contradicts almost any religious belief could be "hurting religious sentiments" unless a threshold of insult to public norms is clear.

Not offering the possibility for bail because the police did not volunteer the suggestion doesn't make sense if bail is an option under the law.

Packing Professor Ghagga off to jail without exploring his legal options is an odd behavior on the part of the judge.

btw - I am not certain that "hurting religious sentiments" is a bailable offense, and that is what makes the alluded to disturbances so critical to the story and also so odd. The disturbances mentioned in the article are coming 3-years after the Rakhri article publication. That doesn't make sense.

None of it makes sense unless there is a hand behind the law that was willing to make the case that the disturbances were serious enough to warrant no bail. That same hand could have stirred the issue at this late date to begin with, stirred the disturbances, and stirred the police and courts to behave as they did.

The publisher of Rozana Spokesman himself had to flee Punjab to the Federal District because of an open warrant against him under Section 295. What both men have in common is their willingness to publish ideas unpopular with the power-brokers in Punjab for whom geography is merely a legal technicality.

This is Section 295 of the Indian Penal Code

Section 295A. Deliberate and malicious acts, intended to outrage religious feelings or any class by insulting its religion or religious beliefs.

295A. Deliberate and malicious acts, intended to outrage religious feelings or any class by insulting its religion or religious beliefs.— Whoever, with deliberate and malicious intention of outraging the religious feelings of any class of citizens of India, by words, either spoken or written, or by signs or by visible representations or otherwise, insults or attempts to insult the religion or the religious beliefs of that class, shall be punished with imprisonment of either description for a term which may extend to three years, or with fine, or with both.

If the FIR was lodged in Bhagapurana, that may explain why he was packed off to Moga. Maybe someone here can explain the details.
 

Tejwant Singh

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Spnadmin ji,

Guru Fateh.

Exactly. These two districts are under different jurisdictions and have nothing to do with each other. The whole story sounds fishy. Why would Prof. Sahib be brought to the judge in Moga when he was arrested in Patiala sounds like a fish story.

As Raksha Bandan or as commonly known as Rakhri was last week if I am not mistaken, some political enemies "exhumed" the 3 year old article where he may have said that this is not a Sikhi tradition and made use of the right timing to divert attention from the cancellation of Sukhbir Badal's trip to Canada, perhaps. It is a mere speculation on my part.

I would like to read what Prof. Gagga wrote about Raksha Bandan three years ago. Yes, it is a Hindu festival which many Sikhs also celebrate but now it is being dropped by the Sikh population who understands Gurmat values better.

If anyone has it, please post it here.

Thanks & regards

Tejwant Singh
 

Ikk Khalsa

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Newspaper office is in Moga which was attacked by hindus (BJP). This news paper had posted a news couple of years back about BJP Ex Chief of District Vijay Kumar Sharma's son doing something inappropriate with a girl at some religious place. Vijay Kumar never called the newspaper office to get any clarification rather he used the political pressure and got police involved and got his supporters to vandalize the newspaper office.
 

spnadmin

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Tejwant Singh ji


The Badal connection had also occurred to me. However, the different ways it would have to play out are so convoluted that I did not go any further. Suffice it to say Professor Ghagga has enemies....... but Hindus? That is another weird aspect of this. His radical point of view regarding Sikhism has no connection to Hindus. His enemies to date have been Sikhs with sponsorship in high places. Hindus were never part of the story until now. I don't know what to make of that one!

Now an RSS connection, that I can make.
 

spnadmin

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Newspaper office is in Moga which was attacked by hindus (BJP). This news paper had posted a news couple of years back about BJP Ex Chief of District Vijay Kumar Sharma's son doing something inappropriate with a girl at some religious place. Vijay Kumar never called the newspaper office to get any clarification rather he used the political pressure and got police involved and got his supporters to vandalize the newspaper office.

Ikk Khalsa ji

That is an important puzzle piece. Now how does Inder Singh Ghagga fit into this other than the publisher of the Rakhri article is the same who published news about Kumar Sharma's son?

Here things get like fly-paper. Did someone say, Now that we are at it, let's get that Inder guy too?"
 

Tejwant Singh

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Tejwant Singh ji


The Badal connection had also occurred to me. However, the different ways it would have to play out are so convoluted that I did not go any further. Suffice it to say Professor Ghagga has enemies....... but Hindus? That is another weird aspect of this. His radical point of view regarding Sikhism has no connection to Hindus. His enemies to date have been Sikhs with sponsorship in high places. Hindus were never part of the story until now. I don't know what to make of that one!

Now an RSS connection, that I can make.

Spnadmin ji,

Badals and the BJP are bedmates. This is the reason Badal has used Punjab as his "private property" of sort for decades because of the political coalition between the two. They do not have candidates of both parties in the same district. They have their territories marked as dogs do deleted

It is a deleted match between the buddies.:)
 
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Ikk Khalsa

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spadmin Ji,

Yes this is confusing indeed because this book was published few years back from which the article was taken. In this article Ghagga Ji condemned Krishan having 108 Gopies and people worshiping Shivling along with Rakhri which Vijay Kumar used to provoke people. Now the guy who publishes the newspaper is Hindu himself. I think they arrested Ghagga Ji along with the publisher for hurting the Hindu sentiments. Police never called newspaper to clarify anything. We all know that its a law of jungle in Punjab.
 

spnadmin

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Tejwant ji

Please do it for all of us on the thread. One advantage here is that as you think of additional points to add you can do that by replying as often as you need to.

This story is stranger than fiction and the video will fill in some of the gaps. Details seem to be everything here.
 

Tejwant Singh

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Here is the full interview in English after Prof. Inder Singh Ghagga's release.

Ghagga: Vaheguru ji ka Khalsa Vaheguru ji ki fateh.

Satpal Singh Dugri: Vaheguru ji ka Khalsa Vaheguru ji ki fateh Bhai Sahib. Are you in Chardi Kala.

Ghagga: Yes I am.

Satpal Singh Dugri: It is important to be in Chardi kala. I wanted to inform the sangat what happened and what kind of message would you like to give to them?

Ghagga:I would like to request all brothers and sisters that they should come forward as they did this time whenever the case of True Gurmat is concerned. We will stop everyone who talks anti Gurmat things with this unity and we have to stay together for the sake of True Gurmat. People who were against these Gurmat ideas are also coming together this time. They have come to the realization the difference between Gurmat and Manmat.

Satpal Singh Dugri: Ghagga ji, how did it all start? Please share with us.

Ghagga: This book of mine has been in publication for the last three years. The book is called, "Begani Dhee Prayia Dhann" (Stranger’s Daughter Stranger’s Wealth”). There is one article in this book called, “Rakhri is slavery to humanity”. This article has been published for three years in the newspapers and is also on the internet. There is a weekly called Malwa Mail owned by Mr. Mittal in which this article was published. This weekly also published something negative about the local MLA (Member of the Legislative Assembly- like the State Senate in the US), which is a common occurrence where newspapers take the politicians to task. This MLA took advantage of my article and sued the publisher and me. The publisher got bailed out quickly because of his political connections, which was not in my case. So because of this my bail was initially denied. But with the help of all the sangat and others who protested against this atrocity in front of the jail and courts, the government was forced to release me.

Satpal Singh Dugri: Did you talk to the judge about this? Did he ask you any kind of questions?

Ghagga: No one asked me any question in the court. I came to know about my bail when the papers were handed to me in the jail.

Satpal Singh Dugri: When you were presented in front of the judge for the first time, was there any kind of conversation then?

Ghagga: They did not ask me anything. They told me to sign on the papers which said that I should be sent to jail till Sept. 4th.

Satpal Singh Dugri: What kind of response did you get from the sangat today? Did they shower you with love?

Ghagga: I cannot express my gratitude to the sangat who came from faraway places even from Ludhiana where I used to teach. It was amazing and I have no words to express this.

Satpal Singh Dugri: Today, after your release, what kind of conversation did you have with the people who were present there from the Panth, Bhai Sahib-(the name of this person is inaudible)?

Ghagga: He talked on the stage in a very nice way and so did I. Although he dresses like a Sant but he is like our brother, talks in a loving manner and we think alike as far as Gurmat things are concerned. He came to see Inder Singh Ghagga and in any case if he shows any weakness in the Gurmat way in some given time in the future, I will still say that he is with me even if he denies anything.

Satpal Singh Dugri: I would like to ask you that in the past you were bodily harmed and I would like to know what kind of determination should the people who speak the truth should have?

Ghagga: If we learn from our Gurus and from all the brave Sikhs of the past, then we should not be afraid or fearful about these kinds of events. Guru Sahibs have taught us a lot through their sacrifices. When I was attacked three years ago, it was quite grave but since then I have been attacked eight times. But Satguru has taught us never to back away and I will follow what our Gurus told us to do.

Satpal Singh Dugri: Would you like to share anything with the sangat now?


Ghagga: I would like to request the Sangat to study Gurbani in the right way, find its true meaning. Do not go behind any Sants, (Derawalas) who only talk about themselves. When the sangat starts studying Gurbani and Sikh history on their own, then only their doubts will be clarified.


Satpal Singh Dugri: Ghagga ji, I want to congratulate you for this victory of the truth. You showed your determination and we would like all to show the same. Vaheguru ji ka Khalsa Vaheguru ji ki fateh.

Ghagga: Vaheguru ji ka Khalsa Vaheguru ji ki fateh.
 

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