BATHINDA, Jan. 31 -- A twin bomb blast in Maur on January 31 evening in 2017, that claimed seven lives, including five children, continues to haunt the kin of the victims and residents of Maur town in Bathinda. The fact that no arrest has been made after nine years rankles them even further. Recalling the incident in which he lost his 14-year-old son Saurav Singla, Rakesh Kumar laments the police authorities for their failure in nabbing the accused behind the explosions during the state assembly electioneering nine years ago. "Saurav was studying in class 7 when we lost him. Like others, my son was also killed, and the respective governments have failed in taking the culprits to task," said Kumar, who runs a provision store in Maur. His wife was appointed to a Class 4 post at the local tehsil office under the Punjab government's decision to grant jobs on compassionate grounds as compensation. A blast occurred in a car minutes after the then Congress candidate from Maur segment Harminder Singh Jassi completed his election meeting on January 31, 2017, just four days ahead of the assembly elections in Punjab. Jassi's daughter is married to Dera Sacha Sauda head Gurmeet Ram Rahim's son, and the three-time MLA joined the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in May 2024. As per the official information, three dera followers-Amrik Singh alias Shankar from Sangrur, Gurtej Singh alias Kala from Sirsa and Avtar Singh from Kurukshetra in Haryana - were named in the case, but no one has been arrested so far. Pronounced proclaimed offenders by a court in October 2018, the trio is facing criminal charges, including murder, attempted murder under the Indian Penal Code and the Explosives Act. Japsimaran Singh (15), Sourav Singla (14), Ankush (11), Ripandeep Singh (9), Barkha (12), Barkha's father Ashok Kumar (40), and Jassi's office manager Harpal Singh Pali (41) were killed in the blast. Bathinda senior superintendent of police (SSP) Jyoti Yadav said on Friday that she has to check for details on the measures being taken to nab the three accused. A special investigation team (SIT) of the state police had filed a chargesheet in the case in January 2020. As per the official information, since January 30, 2020, the case is still with a sub-divisional court of Talwandi Sabo, where the process of recording statements of the prosecution witnesses continues to date. After hearing the matter last on January 9, the judicial magistrate first class (JMIC) Navjot Kaur has listed the case on February 7 to record statements of more witnesses. Deceased Ripandeep's father, Nachhatar Singh, said on Friday that it is sad that the police have failed even to arrest the culprits and deliver justice. "After a delay of years, I got my statement recorded in the court in June last year. We are losing hope of justice," said the aggrieved father while declining to talk further. Another Maur resident,Sheel Garg, said that Maur Bomb Blast Virodhi Sangharsh was constituted, but hopes of the pressure group are also eroding. A 27-year-old Jaskaran Singh, who had suffered serious burn injuries in the twin explosions, rued a delay in justice. "I went to attend the Congress rally held in support of Jassi. I used to take farmlandon lease, but the blast left me unable to work. The Shiromani Akali Dal-Bharatiya Janata Party alliance was at the helm when the deadly incident took place. Later, the Congresscompleted its five-year tenure under two chief ministers, and now, the Aam Aadmi Party has completed four years in power, but justice continues to elude us," the blast survivor added....