Bathinda calm

Bathinda calm
Rajay Deep/Tribune News Service

Doomwali/Bathinda, July 19
On the day after the clash between Dera followers and Sikh activists that took place at Dabwali, an uneasy calm prevailed in Bathinda district. Shops and schools remained partially closed. The police kept vigil on Haryana border and at all centres of the Sacha Sauda sect in the district.
Reinforcements were called in from Faridkot and Kapurthala to beef up security. The five deras of the sect, at Salabatpura, Maur, Lehra Mohabbat, Kaile Bandar and on the Malout road, were cordoned off.
Meanwhile, in Bathinda, as a precautionary measure, a number of schools and shops remained closed. To instil a sense of security among people, the district police carried out a flag march thrice during the day.
Besides deras, security was increased at the Doomwali barrier, the border point between Punjab and Haryana. Police officers deputed on the state border with Haryana were ordered to be focused on the entry and exit radical Sikh leaders.