Patiala: The statue on the mall Road of this formerly princely city of Patiala is a standing testimony to more than Punjab’s terrorist problem. The M.K. Gandhi memorial, located on a bustling road close to the district headquarters is guarded by the police. It was over two decades ago that some Naxalites tried to dent and desecrate the sculpture. Soon, thereafter, came up the shielding walls and two tents housing the guards. And, they have stayed.
The incongruity of the bare-chested naked fakir, leaning on a staff alone, under the custody of half a dozen armed men in uniform has continued to rile the local Gandhians. But their objection has lost all chance of a hearing with the onset of ‘Khalistan’s”.
