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Diamond cutter’s protest across Gujarat for higher wages in Bhavnagar, Gujarat, lead to the death of a worker and at least two others injured when a private security guard fired on them.

During the agitation, the protesters were throwing stones demanding higher salaries from their employers after their counterparts in Surat were given a 20 per cent pay hike by the Surat Diamond Association. During the agitation a security guard of a diamond polishing unit to open fire on the workers before arrival of the police.

“We have detained the security guard who opened fire on the diamond workers,” Bhavnagar Superintendent of Police Anupam Singh Gehlot told PTI. Later police chased the agitators away. Gehlot said that the city is peaceful now.

Workers in Rajkot, Ahmedabad, Amreli and Bhavnagar started protests on Friday. Hundreds of diamond workers in Rajkot struck work on Friday to press for a 30 per cent hike in wages. Nearly 3,000 workers engaged joined the day-long strike. They tried to shut shops in Bapunagar locality of Ahmedabad.  Police arrested them and detained eight persons for disturbing peace.

Vithal Mendpara, president of the Bhavnagar Diamond Association, told PTI companies had agreed to hike wages but workers want salaries matching the number of hours they put in.

Diamond workers in Amreli took out a rally and gave a memorandum to the district collector.

Tags: , Diamond Workers, Gujarat, Protest, Salary, Surat, Wages

The alleged killing of a protester by the Dera Sacha Sauda chief’s bodyguard in a mall in Mumbai has disrupted peace in the city and after the incident the Sikh organizations threatened to arrest the Dera chief Baba Ram Rahim by June 24.

The Sikh organization has warned that if the chief is not arrested then they will disrupt the railway routes. They gathered and disturbed the rail traffic in Punjab.

Baba Harnam Singh Dhuma, chief of Damdami Taksal in the meeting of Sikh religious organizations at Jalandhar stated that no train would be allowed to move from Amritsar to Delhi on Wednesday (June 25) if Baba Ram Rahim is not arrested by Tuesday.

“The rail traffic would be interrupted on June 25 from morning eight am to seven pm and further line of action would be announced in the evening on same day on Wednesday (June 25) against the Dera Sacha Sauda chief.” He added.

The chief minister of Punjab also termed the incident as shocking and said that the responsible persons should be immediately arrested.

The dera Cheif visited Mumbai to attend a function and when he reached Nirmal Shopping Complex in Mulund in Mumbai, some sikh protesters objected his visit which made the safeguards to fire killing one person and two injured. The killed person was identified as Balkar Singh.

The Shiromani Gurudwara Parbhandhak Committee (SGPC) president, Avtar Singh Makkar has announced Rs 5 lakh for the family of Balkar Singh and Rs one lakh to the injured.  Makkar is coming to Mumbai on June 23 to hand over the cheque to the family of the victims.

It is also reported that Makkar will meet the Prime Minister, Dr Manmohan Singh to discuss the issue of Dera Sacha Sauda as he saught an appointment with the PM.

The chief of Dera Sacha Sauda has been surrounded by controversies since last e few months for one or the other reason. He enjoys Z-plus security cover, mostly from the Haryana police. In May last year, a long debate started when he dressed himself like Sikh Guru Gobind Singh during his sect’s religious ceremony. Sikh community protested this action and violence speeded particularly in Punjab and Haryana region. Punjab remained on the boil for over two weeks last year as the anti-sect protests intensified.

The controversial Dera chief is also facing two cases of conspiracy to murder and one case of rape in a Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) court in Ambala.

Tags: Anti Dera, Baba Ram Rahim, Dera Sacha Sauda, Mumbai, Protest, Protests, Ram Rahim, Sikhs

A day after clashes between Sikh protesters and bodyguards of Dera Sacha Sauda sect chief in a Mumbai shopping mall leading one person dead and 2 injured, Sikh people blocked railway tracks in Mumbai and a shutdown was observed in Sikh dominated areas making the matter worse.

The community member’s squatted railway tracks and halted train services since morning near Mulund station.  All schools and colleges run by the Sikh community also remained closed. A shutdown was observed in place in Sikh majority areas in Thane district like Kalyan and Ulhasnagar.

A Central Railway spokesman said that the agitators blocked all the four lines and damaged the Mulund railway station. He added that two suburban lines were later cleared with police help and the other two would be cleared soon.

Groups of Sikhs were seen walking the streets, brandishing swords. Hence security has been beefed up in Sikh-dominated localities of Mumbai, Thane, and Nanded in northeast Maharashta.

On Friday night when the leader of Dera Sachcha Sauda reached in Nirmal Lifestyle Mall in Mulund along with his safe gaurds, some sikh people protedted his visit and during the clash, the safeguard opened fire which killed one person and left two injured.

The victim who was killed in the firing was identified as Malkar Singh, while two passers-by suffered injuries. The Dera chief was said to be present near the mall when the violent incident took place. When asked about the incident he refused that his safeguards fired on the crowd.

Stray incidents of violence and stone pelting were reported from different parts of Mulund on Saturday morning but there were no reports of casualties, a police official said.

After the incident, Punjab Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal called his Maharashtra counterpart Vilasrao Deshmukh and demanded that those responsible for the firing be arrested. Moving swiftly, Deputy Chief Minister R R Patil ordered an inquiry into the incident.

Tags: Baba Ram Rahim, Dera Sacha Sauda, Mumbai, Protest, Ram Rahim, Sikhs