Gun culture booming in city, cops helpless

Ludhiana: Gun culture in Ludhiana is alive and kicking, even as the police are making efforts to curb incidents of firing by cancelling firearm licences and putting several suspicious licence applications on hold. Monday's broad daylight fatal shooting of Mata Chand Kaur, the widow of an ex-head of the Namdhari sect, yet again laid bare of how guns are used with impunity in the city.
The shooting incident comes barely a week after the city police had claimed that they had begun the process of cancelling arms licences and putting on hold several applications which looked dubious. Even as incidents of firing head north in the city, data shows that Ludhiana is ranked third among districts in Punjab when it comes to the number of firearm licences. Gurdaspur and Bathinda lead the state with 36,294 and 36,232 firarm licences, respectively.
In Ludhiana, 26,756 licences have been issued to people. A majority of firearm licence-holders are landlords, politicians, property dealers and government officers. "Almost half the firing incidents (that have taken place in Ludhiana this year) involved the use of licenced weapons, mostly pistols and revolvers. Most recommendations for cancellation of licences have been made as holders were found to have been involved in crimes or they did not have genuine threat to their lives," said a cop dealing with such cases. He added that some of the recommendations for cancellation of licenses were those of politicians or persons backed by them.
Including Monday's incident, four cases of shooting could have resulted in fanning tension between communities.
Another major problem with gun licences in the state is that a circular by the Union ministry of home affairs had pointed out that firearms with civilians should not be more than 2.5 times than those of the civil police force. In Punjab, however, the general public has almost 15-20 times more firearms in some districts, including Ludhiana.
Though Ludhiana police commissioner Jatinder Singh Aulakh has claimed that there would be zero tolerance towards firing incidents in the city, the spurt in incidents of firing has raised eyebrows about efforts made by force to handle the situation.
According Aulakh, the licences of people found involved in such incidents are being cancelled, and licences are being renewed only after thorough verification of people's credentials.
Cases of firing:
Jan 9 | Owner of a DJ system allegedly fires in the air from his licence firearm and also at the hosts of a Lohri party after they request him to play music beyond a particular time on Jessiyan Road.
Jan 18 | Two unidentified miscreants open fire at 35-year-old Naresh Kumar, mukhya shikshak (main teacher) of a RSS shakha at Shaheed Park in Kidwai Nagar, before the shakha was to start early morning
Feb 3 | A youth president of Shiv Sena, Punjab, receives serious bullet injuries after motorcycle-borne miscreants fire at him near Basti Jodhewal Chowk in late evening
Feb 11 | Youth allegedly fires at father, Joginder Pal Dang of Kot Alamgir, when he was standing outside Sanjiv Bakery (country-made illegal weapon)
Feb 20 | 4 motorcycle-borne miscreants shoot dead sarpanch of Khwajke village Ravi Khwajke at marriage palace
Feb 28 | 27-year-old man injured seriously after landlord of his parents, who live separately, fires at him on Rahon Road (licenced weapon)
March 28 | Two men, including a leader of ruling Akali Dal, injured after being shot at in Dugri-II. Property dealer Tajinder Singh fired at them following a quarrel between their children (licenced weapon)
April 4 | Two men riding a motorcycle emerge and one of them to fires at Mata Chand Kaur; escape in the broad daylight