26062026-LT-01.qxd 26-06-2026 00:30 Page 1 c m y b Ludhiana tribune NEW SEED PACKS CAN BE SOWN WITHOUT UNPACKING FOOTBALL TALENT APLENTY, REGION LACKS SUPPORT SYSTEM SINGER-ACTOR DILJIT DOSANJH TO STAR IN RANNA CH DHANNA Agri university has developed a new, user-friendlysystem for packing seeds of vegetable crops. P2 Football enthusiasts in Punjab are reflecting on state of a sport that once enjoyed considerable popularity. P3 Punjabi superstar Diljit Dosanjh is set to headline the upcoming Punjabi entertainer Ranna Ch Dhanna. P4 » » » FORECAST PARTLY CLOUDY MAX 39°C | MIN 26°C YESTERDAY MAX 38°C | MIN 26°C SUNSET FRIDAY 7:28 PM SUNRISE SATURDAY 5:23 AM FRIDAY | 26 JUNE 2026 | LUDHIANA Oppn calls F&CC appointments ‘arbitrary’, says will move court Manav Mander Tribune News Service Ludhiana, June 25 The formation of the Municipal Corporation’s most powerful Finance and Contracts Committee (F&CC) has triggered protests, with the Opposition warning that the matter could soon land in court. Alleging arbitrary appointments, lack of opposition representation and unbalanced regional distribution, senior Congress councillors said the ruling Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) was undermining democratic traditions. Mayor Inderjit Kaur on Wednesday completed the six-member panel by inducting Aman Bagga, son of MLA Madan Lal Bagga, and Yuvraj Sidhu, son of MLA Kulwant Singh Sidhu. The committee now comprises Mayor Inderjit Kaur, Senior Deputy Mayor Rakesh Parashar, Deputy Mayor Prince Johar, Municipal Commissioner Ojasvi Alankar, Aman Bagga and Yuvraj Sidhu. Not a single councillor from opposition parties has been included in the panel. Former Senior Deputy Mayor Shyam Sunder Malhotra accused the ruling par- No councillor from opposition parties included in the MC's F&CC. FILE MAYOR INDUCTS TWO SONS OF LEGISLATORS Mayor Inderjit Kaur on Wednesday completed the six-member committee by inducting Aman Bagga, son of MLA Madan Lal Bagga, and Yuvraj Sidhu, son of MLA Kulwant Singh Sidhu. ty of bypassing the MC General House and said: “If the appointments are not withdrawn, we will challenge them in court.” He pointed out that traditionally, one opposition member was always accommodated in the F&CC. Congress Councillor Gaurav Bhatti called the move “a disgrace to democracy”. He said the government was ignoring law and democratic traditions, adding that proper elections should have been held. The voice of the opposition has been deliberately suppressed by the ruling party. The new composition has also sparked debate over regional representation. Both North constituency and Atam Nagar now enjoy double representation as Parashar and Bagga are from North and Johar and Sidhu are from Atam Nagar while South, Central and West constituencies have been left out. Political circles see it as a tilt towards influence rather than balance. Punjab Congress secretary Dhruv Aggarwal demanded that MLA Madan Lal Bagga should issue a “white paper” on how many youths outside his family have secured government jobs. He alleged that while the government claims to have given 65,000 jobs but the reality was something different. Aggarwal listed multiple family members of Bagga were drawing salaries from the state exchequer and urged transparency through public disclosures. BJP councillor Rohit Sikka termed the appointments as “open bullying and corruption”, alleging that the Mayor and the Commissioner acted under pressure from ruling party MLAs. He warned that the Opposition would press for cancellation of the appointments, saying: “It’s nothing but a mockery of democracy”. Despite repeated attempts, the Mayor was not available for her comments. c m y b Man nabbed for raping minor Tribune News Service Fire personnel try to douse the flames at a multi-storey textile manufacturing unit at Kailash Nagar in the Sherpur area of Ludhiana on Wednesday night. TRIBUNE PHOTO: HIMANSHU MAHAJAN Huge stock gutted at textile unit Nikhil Bhardwaj Tribune News Service Ludhiana, June 25 A major fire broke out in a textile manufacturing unit, Shreyans Fabrics, at Kailash Nagar, Sherpur, here, on Wednesday night. Workers were reportedly inside the unit when the fire started. They managed to save their lives. Initially, the workers also tried to douse the flames but in vain. The multi-storey unit houses machinery and stock, both raw and finished, in huge quantity, which gutted in the fire. Workers managed to shift some of the stock to a safe place. Even huge stock kept RECENT FIRE INCIDENTS June 22:A bus going to UP from Ludhiana caught fire near Doraha, 100 passengers had a close shave June 19: A multi-storey hosiery in the basement of the factory was also reduced to ashes. The exact loss could not be ascertained as of now. Fire officer Aatish Rai, who was leading the operation, said the blaze started from the upper floor, which engulfed the entire unit within an hour. When factory employees and the owner failed to control the flames, they alerted the fire unit caught fire near Police Division 3 June 16: A shanty and two school buses gutted in a fire at Pavitar Nagar, Ludhiana brigade. Fire tenders reached the spot within a few minutes, around 12.10 am. “Since the entire unit was under flames and even the main entrance was blocked, firemen had to use ladder to reach the first floor. Grills of the basement were also broken to control the situation. As many as 175 fire tenders continued on page 2 Ludhiana, June 25 A case of alleged rape of a 16-year-old girl has come to light in the Krishna Nagar area of the city. The matter surfaced after the victim recently informed her family about the incident. When the complaint reached the police, they registered a case under various sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) and the POCSO Act. According to information, the incident occurred in May. A tenant, who was staying on the upper floor of the girl’s house, allegedly sexually assaulted her when she was alone. Later, he threatened the victim of dire consequences due to which she remained silent. The case took a serious turn when the girl also accused a relative of the main suspect of sexually assaulting her. After staying in fear for several weeks, the victim mustered courage to narrate the entire incident to her mother. The family then approached the police. The police arrested the key suspect, Balwinder Yadav, and a raid was being conducted to nab his relative, Ajay. Officials of the PAU police station said the matter was being probed and the absconding suspect would be nabbed soon.