Days after a similar incident involving Dr BR Ambedkar’s statue in Ludhiana, another statue was damaged in Hoshiarpur district and the latest incident was reported in Barian Kalan village in the Chabbewal area during the early hours of Tuesday, September 15.
According to the police, unidentified persons allegedly threw stones at the statue installed near the village grain market, and the attack damaged the face of the statue and a finger on its raised hand. Police have started an investigation and are working to identify the people involved.
Superintendent of Police (Investigation), Hoshiarpur, Navneet Singh Mahal said a case was being registered at Chabbewal police station against unidentified persons, and police teams are examining CCTV footage from the area as well as nearby locations to trace the accused.
A video purportedly showing the incident has also surfaced on social media. Police are examining the video as part of the investigation, and a separate report said the video circulating online also contained an unverified claim of responsibility, but the police investigation into the incident and the identity of those responsible is still underway.
The police have also pointed to previous cases involving Ambedkar statues in Hoshiarpur district and according to SP Navneet Singh Mahal, similar incidents reported earlier in the district had been traced by the police. In March 2026, an alleged desecration of an Ambedkar statue was reported in Noorpur Jattan village under Mahilpur police station. A similar incident had also been reported at the same place in June 2025.
The Barian Kalan incident comes only days after the alleged desecration of an Ambedkar statue at Jalandhar Bypass Chowk in Ludhiana on September 8 and that incident led to protests and shutdowns in different parts of Punjab. Jalandhar and Hoshiarpur also observed a bandh on September 11 after Dalit organisations called for action against those responsible for the Ludhiana incident.
The latest incident has also drawn a political response from the BJP. BJP leader Sheetal Angural, visited Barian Kalan on Wednesday along with BJP leaders and workers from Jalandhar to protest the damage to the statue and during the protest, BJP workers raised slogans in support of Dr Ambedkar and against the Punjab government. Angural questioned the state’s law-and-order situation and demanded that those responsible for the incident be identified and arrested.
Angural also claimed that this was the ninth incident involving the alleged desecration of an Ambedkar statue in Punjab since the Aam Aadmi Party government came to power and this figure is a political claim and does not represent the police’s official count in the material currently available.
BJP leaders further demanded an impartial investigation into the claims and material circulating on social media and they also raised the demand for stronger legal measures to prevent damage to statues and memorials dedicated to Dr Ambedkar. The protesters alleged that similar incidents have repeatedly taken place in Punjab and demanded strict action against the accused and these allegations are part of the political response to the incident and have not been established by the ongoing police investigation.
Punjab Cabinet Minister Harbhajan Singh ETO also reacted to the incident and described the damage to Dr Ambedkar’s statue as an attempt by miscreants to disturb the atmosphere in Punjab. ETO said that the police would soon arrest those responsible and that the strictest possible action would be taken against them and his response comes as the police investigation continues.
At present, the police have not publicly identified any accused in the Barian Kalan case. CCTV footage and the video circulating on social media are being examined to establish what happened and identify those involved, meanwhile, the Bahujan Samaj Party has announced a demonstration on September 18 over recurring incidents involving Ambedkar statues in Punjab. BSP Punjab president Avtar Singh Karimpuri has demanded stronger protection for memorials dedicated to Dr Ambedkar and questioned the security arrangements around such sites.