Tuesday, July 21, 2026
ADVT 
India

Navjot Sidhu Exempt From Appearing Before Inquiry On Amritsar Tragedy

Darpan News Desk IANS, 02 Nov, 2018 07:14 PM
    Giving a clean chit to Punjab cabinet minister Navjot Singh Sidhu, the probe official exempted him from appearing before the magisterial inquiry being conducted into the last month's train tragedy near Joda Phatak in Punjab's Amritsar in which about 60 people were killed.
     
     
    Jalandhar Divisional Commissioner B Purushartha is conducting the inquiry into the October 19 Amritsar rail tragedy.
     
     
    Giving a clean chit to Mr Sidhu, Mr Purushartha told reporters in Amritsar that the commission was satisfied by the reply given by the minister in a letter through his wife Navjot Kaur Sidhu and he has been exempted from appearing before the panel.
     
     
    On October 31, the inquiry commission had asked the Sidhu couple to appear before it to record their statement.  
     
     
    "Commission is satisfied with the written viewpoint submitted by Sidhu," Mr Purushartha said.
     
     
    He said Navjot Kaur Sidhu was asked many questions about the train accident and Dussehra function which she had attended as a chief guest.
     
     
    The Divisional Commissioner said that her replies before the panel were satisfactory.
     
     
    He, however, said that in future if need arose Ms Kaur could be asked to come again before the commission.
     
    When Navjot Kaur was asked about the absence of her husband, she said that he could not come up due to various political engagements. "At the time of accident he was not in the city but was in Bengaluru," she told reporters.
     
     
    After the train incident, the opposition had trained guns at Navjot Kaur claiming she ran away from the spot, a charge vehemently denied by the former legislator.
     
     
    Mr Purushartha said that so far statements of Divisional Manager Northern Railway Ferozpur, Vivek Kumar and Divisional Security officer of Railway, Dayanand, driver and assistant driver of the train have been recorded.
     
     
    Six other railway employees were also summoned for statement, including Gateman and Railway Protection Force officials, he said, adding that drivers of all the trains who were on duty and moved on the same track when accident occurred on October 19 would also be summoned to gather more evidence.
     
     
    He assured that person or any official accountable for the train accident would not be spared at any cost.
     
     
    The commission had also recorded the statements of more than fifty one victims, including their family members.  
     
     
    During investigations, Mr Purushartha had earlier along with senior police officers, including DCP Amrik Singh Powar and Deputy Commissioner Kamaljeet Singh Sangha, had visited the accident spot to verify certain issues on different aspects.      
     
     
    The team had also visited Gateman cabin and noticed the trains speed which were running on the track, officials said.
     
     
    About 60 people were killed and 57 injured after a crowd of Dussehra revellers that had spilled onto railway tracks while watching burning of Ravana effigy was run over by a train near Joda Phatak in Amritsar.

    MORE India ARTICLES

    In Big Boost, Jaswant's Son Manvendra Singh Joins Congress

    In a big boost to the Congress ahead of Assembly elections in Rajasthan, Manvendra Singh, son of former Union Minister and one of the founders of the BJP, Jaswant Singh, joined the Congress on Wednesday.

    In Big Boost, Jaswant's Son Manvendra Singh Joins Congress

    Man Who Jumped, Naked, Into Toronto Shark Tank Is 37-Yr-Old David Weaver From Nelson, B.C.: Police

    A video of the incident, which went viral on social media, shows the naked man swimming in the shark tank. As per the news report, the tank named Dangerous Lagoon is a 2.9-million-litre tank with an underwater gallery to several marine animals along with 17 sharks.

    Man Who Jumped, Naked, Into Toronto Shark Tank Is 37-Yr-Old David Weaver From Nelson, B.C.: Police

    WATCH: Karnataka Woman Thrashes Bank Manager For Demanding 'Sexual Favours', Video Goes Viral

    A woman thrashed a bank manager in Karnataka’s Davangere district publicly for allegedly seeking sexual favours for sanctioning a loan with the video of the incident going viral on Tuesday.

    WATCH: Karnataka Woman Thrashes Bank Manager For Demanding 'Sexual Favours', Video Goes Viral

    Did He Swear? Watch: Mark Waugh Falters While Pronouncing 'Fakhar Zaman,' Laughs It Off

    Following a fine run in the One-day Internationals (ODIs), Fakhar Zaman earned his Test cap for Pakistan on Tuesday.

    Did He Swear? Watch: Mark Waugh Falters While Pronouncing 'Fakhar Zaman,' Laughs It Off

    PICS: Sikh-American Chamber Of Commerce Organises 7Th Annual Gala In Jersey

    More than 400 accomplished Sikh-American business members and professionals attended the Sikh American Chamber of Commerce's 7th Annual Gala in Jersey City recently.

    PICS: Sikh-American Chamber Of Commerce Organises 7Th Annual Gala In Jersey

    Changing Faces Of Protest Sikh Radical Leaders Take Centre Stage, Sideline AAP Leaders

    Parallel Jathedars Dhian Singh Mand and Baljit Singh Daduwal sidelined Sukhpal Singh Khaira and other AAP leaders at the Mahan Shaheedi Samagam at Bargari on Sunday.

    Changing Faces Of Protest Sikh Radical Leaders Take Centre Stage, Sideline AAP Leaders