Punjab News: Chaos reigned at the Gurdaspur Central Jail in Punjab on Thursday as inmates clashed with prison authorities, reportedly over lack of facilities. The inmates pelted stones at police personnel, vandalised the premises and also allegedly resorted to arso as they tried to set the place on fire, reports said.
Officials said that five policemen, including a Station House Officer (SHO), as well as four prisoners were injured in the clashes. The situation was finally brought under control after over 8 hours on late Thursday evening, they said.
Visuals shared on social media showed some people, presumably inmates, standing atop the roof of the jail building and hurling bricks and stones while plumes of thick black smoke emanate from the premises.
STORY | Punjab: 2 groups of inmates clash in Gurdaspur central jail
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5 cops, including SHO injured
As per the police, clashes erupted between prisoners and jail staff over some issue at around 11 AM on Thursday morning. Police personnel guarding the prison rushed to control the situation but were met with bricks and stones hurled by the enraged inmates.
Five cops, including an SHO were injured in the stone pelting by inmates while four prisoners sustained injuries in retaliatory action by security personnel, they said, adding that all the wounded are undergoing treatment at Civil Hospital Gurdaspur.
Prisoners clashed in Central Jail Gurdaspur, they attacked on police force that went to rescue the prisoners. Constable Jail Security Jodha Singh and SHO Mandeep of Dhariwal were injured during the attack and were admitted to Civil Hospital. @DGPPunjabPolice @BhagwantMann pic.twitter.com/SUYRV25SiT
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The injured cops were identified as Yoddha Singh, Havildar Baljinder Singh, ASI Jagdeep Singh, Manoj Kumar (a jail employee), and Dhariwal police station SHO Mandeep Mangotra. The injured prisoners are; Javed Ehmand, Gurvinder Singh, Harsh, and Vishal, the police said.
What caused the clash?
Giving details, a senior police official said that three days ago, there was an altercation between jail staff and some inmates who complained of poor facilities at the prison, security, and ill-treatment of prisoners.
“On Thursday morning, there was a scuffle between a group of inmates and a security guard which soon escalated and clashes broke out between police personnel and prisoners,” said DGP (Law and Order) Gurinder Singh Dhillon.
The DGP said that the rioting inmates broke into the jail barrack, climbed on the roof of the building and and set it on fire, adding that the prison barracks were damaged in the incident.
The senior officer added that the issue was finally resolved after nearly 8 hours and prisoners were assured that there demands would be looked into.
“The Divisional Commissioner (DC) has deputed three specialist doctors to visit the jail within the next three days and conduct medical checkups of inmates,” DGP Dhillon said.
Situation under control, CRPF deployed
Another senior officer said the prisoners have apprised him of their problems and efforts are underway to address these.
“The situation is completely under control and an investigation has been launched to determine the cause behind the incident,” said ADGP (Jail) Arunpal Singh.
The ADGP said that strict action will be taken against those involved in vandalising the jail premises.
Meanwhile, the Gurdaspur police requisitioned the services of police personnel from neighbouring areas like Pathankot, Amritsar, Hoshiarpur, Batala, Tarn Taran to bring the situation under control at the jail, officials said.
A CRPF contingent has also been deployed at the Gurdaspur Central Jail in wake of the clashes, they said.
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