Amritsar, Oct 2: The Border Security Force (BSF) on Friday thwarted a major infiltration attempt across the India-Pakistan border in Punjab by neutralising two Pakistani intruders who tried to sneak into Indian territory in the state’s Tarn Taran district, officials said.

The incident occurred in the BOP Rajoke area of ​​Tarn Taran early in the day.

According to sources, the BSF troopers swung into action after noticing suspicious movement near the border and challenged the purported infiltrators.

At least three individuals were moving towards the Indian border from the Chattanwala area on the Pakistani side, the sources said, adding that they were challenged and warned against moving any further. When they did not pay any heed and kept moving towards the Indian side, the BSF personnel opened fire.

While two infiltrators were shot dead, a third one managed to run back. The identity of the neutralised Pakistani intruders is yet to be ascertained.

The dead bodies have been handed over to police for a post-mortem examination and further proceedings are underway, in close coordination with the Punjab Police.

The incident underscores the level of alertness maintained by security agencies regarding infiltration attempts along the India-Pakistan border in the Punjab sector.

The incident comes amid continued security concerns along Punjab’s 553-km-long international border with Pakistan, which has witnessed several infiltration and cross-border smuggling attempts in recent years. However, several of these were successfully foiled by the BSF jawans.

Meanwhile, Punjab Police dismantled two illegal arms and narcotics supply networks and apprehended four accused and recovered 10 kg of heroin and 10 pistols.

Preliminary investigation revealed that the accused are allegedly linked to foreign-based smugglers and are involved in procuring illegal weapons and narcotics, Director General of Police Gaurav Yadav said.

Two first information reports (FIRs) were registered in Amritsar. Further investigation is underway to uncover the complete network and establish the backward and forward linkages, he added.

In a related earlier development, Amritsar Rural Police had dismantled an illegal arms and narcotics supply network with the arrest of three people, comprising a woman, her husband and her brother. The police had recovered 10.030 kg of heroin, two sophisticated assault rifles, including an AK-47 and an AK-56, along with three magazines and 10 cartridges from their possession.

Lucknow, Oct 2: Samajwadi Party (SP) President Akhilesh Yadav on Friday said he would welcome leaders from rival camps, willing to join the opposition’s efforts to defeat the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), into his party, saying that elections are a time to “forget past mistakes”.

Interacting with reporters here, the SP chief said: “This is the time for Rajya Sabha elections, and elections are a time for coming together. It offers an opportunity to forget past mistakes, stand with others, and stand up for principles.”

“If anyone feels that our democracy, our Constitution, and our country’s economy are under attack, due to rising inflation, E20 being blended into petrol — if they believe these are wrong decisions (by the Centre), then…it is a time to come together before the Rajya Sabha and (Assembly) elections. That is why we should forget all bitterness during this time,” he added.

“Those who have been deviated from their path, those of our friends who want to join us…we will forget everything that took place in the past.”

Akhilesh Yadav also came out in support of the INDIA bloc’s proposed ‘Save Democracy’ march even as the BJP-led NDA continues to criticise him for skipping the opposition alliance’s recent meeting in New Delhi.

“Everyone should unite to ‘Save Democracy’. Together, we must come forward to save this beautiful country, its rich history of democracy, and our Constitution,” he said.

He also launched an attack on Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath-led government over flooding issues being faced by those residing in areas near the Gomti River.

“I am saddened by the fact that many families living along the banks of the Gomti River are facing a crisis. There has been waterlogging in the area for months. This government is asleep. Those who wanted to create smart cities and clean the rivers ended up cleaning out the budget, but the rivers remain uncleaned,” he said.

On Gandhi Jayanti, Akhilesh Yadav underlined that Mahatma Gandhi showed us the path of truth, non-violence and taught us the spirit of sacrifice.

“Father of the nation, Mahatma Gandhi ji worked towards fostering goodwill, brotherhood, and mutual love in society, and he forced the British to leave India. Today, on his birth anniversary, as we remember Mahatma Gandhi ji’s contributions, we take a resolve to work towards fulfilling his goal — to ensure that the last person, the poorest person, is connected to the mainstream,” he said.

New Delhi, Oct 2: Left student unions and several other organisations staged protests here on Friday to demand the resignation of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar, with a large number of students and activists participating and several of them being detained by police.

CPI-M General Secretary M.A. Baby told media that thousands of youth and student activists of the party-affiliated Students’ Federation of India (SFI) and Democratic Youth Federation of India (DYFI) had arrived in Delhi from different parts of the country to participate in the protest.

“I think this would be the biggest mobilisation in Delhi today. They are going to strongly register their demand that Gyanesh Kumar, who has been nakedly violating all existing rules of the functioning of the Election Commission, should be removed,” he said.

“INDIA bloc has taken a decision. We are going to conduct a rally on November 1. On October 6, MPs of the INDIA bloc and others will be marching. As he (Gyanesh Kumar) is not resigning, we will continue to protest,” he added.

Rajya Sabha member A.A. Rahim said Delhi Police had denied permission for the protest at Jantar Mantar, forcing protesters to proceed without permission.

“We will not surrender to authoritarianism. We will not turn back and will continue our fight to safeguard the Indian Constitution, because that is our duty. Peaceful protests are our right; how can they prevent us?” Rahim said.

“We will fight for justice,” he added.

CPI-M leader Brinda Karat alleged that the Election Commission’s actions had undermined voting rights and demanded Gyanesh Kumar’s resignation or removal.

“On Gandhi Jayanti, we are pledging to defend the principles for which Gandhi ji fought, and one of those rights is the equal right to vote,” Karat said.

Karat also alleged that nearly 13 crore voters had been illegally deleted under Gyanesh Kumar’s leadership and demanded an end to the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls.

About the denial of permission for the protest, Karat said, “We don’t require permission to defend democracy.”

She also criticised the detention of protesters, saying, “What is detention? Detention versus deletion.”

Delhi Police had imposed prohibitory orders under Section 163 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita (BNSS), 2023, in the Jantar Mantar area. The order prohibits public gatherings or assemblies of five or more people, processions, demonstrations, picketing and dharnas without prior written permission. It also restricts shouting slogans and making speeches without permission.

Members of Left organisations and civil society groups had called for protests against the Election Commission over the ongoing SIR exercise and demanded action against Gyanesh Kumar. Protesters were detained after police denied permission for the demonstration.