Cops crack down on Punjab’s gangsters

IN ACTION The gang culture that was a major concern has taken a beating in the past 10 months with eight ‘most wanted’ gangsters killed and 27 arrested

CHANDIGARH: On January 26 as the Republic Day celebrations were winding down, a Punjab Police team was still at work in a Rajasthan border village.

It had surrounded a house and bullets were flying. Within half an hour, their 16-month search for the state’s mostwanted gangster was over. Harjinder Singh, better known was as Vicky Gounder, was dead and so was his aide, Prema Lahoria. “Excellent work by DGP Suresh Arora, DG Intelligence Dinkar Gupta and OCCU team, including AIG Gurmeet Singh and Inspector Vikram Brar. Proud of you boys,” chief minister Amarinder Singh tweeted that evening.

The gang culture thriving in Punjab has been a concern not just for Singh but the police establishment as well.

Gun-toting men have had a free run for a long time. Jail was no bar – social media was their weapon of choice, earning them huge followings that they simply loved. Through Facebook posts and live videos they would often taunt police.

They flirted with politics, forged links with Khalistani separatists sitting in Europe and had rap sheets that stretched way beyond Punjab’s borders.

But over the last one year, the tide seems to be turning. In the last 10 months, eight “most-wanted” gangsters have been killed and 27 arrested. The list of 650 criminals on the loose has been reduced to around 100. Police have also seized 189 vehicles, 97 weapons and ~1.7 crore in cash. “Out of the 38 category A (most wanted) and B gangsters, 21 have been either nabbed or killed in encounters in the past few months. We will get hold of a few more in the coming days,” director general of police (intelligence) Dinkar Gupta said last week.

CARROT AND STICK

The success lies in the two-pronged strategy the state government adopted last year. Police officials met the families, asking them to prevail upon the gangsters to shun crime and give themselves up. On the other hand, they launched an all-out offensive.

The crackdown had the desired effect, with dreaded gangsters such as Jaipal Singh Bhullar, Tirath Singh and Dilpreet Singh, alias Rinda, forced into hiding and putting their activities on hold.

Three gangsters had surrendered within days of Gounder’s death and another five were arrested.

“The free hand given by the chief min- ister has paid off. These criminals must understand that a state never grows old, but the age of crime and criminals is limited. Our crackdown will continue,” director general of police Suresh Arora said.

LOVE OF THE GUN

Gun culture is not new to Punjab, which flourished after the green revolution in the 1960s. The riches added to the fascination for gun that was firmly established in popular culture – there is a long list of songs that celebrates the weapon.

The dark days of terrorism, too, kept the guns alive. But it was with the real estate boom, which started in 2000, that Punjab saw the emergence of these gangsters, most of whom came from well-off families. The problem lay in the culture and lifestyle of Punjabis, a landlord’s son was no longer interested in farming, said Parmod Kumar, director, Institute of Development and Communication.

“With enough money to spend and no productive things to use energy on, they get attracted towards Robinhoodism and political power these gangsters enjoy. This life gives them a kick and they eventually fall in the net of criminals,” said Kumar, who is also a sociologist.

The power trip and the “popularity” are indeed a big draw. “When I used to visit Rampura Phul (his hometown) and Bathinda, people used to salute me and show respect. They offered me money too,” said Lakha Sidhana, a former gangster facing cases of murder. Social media and popular culture that extolled gangsters in songs and films further fuelled the trend. Gounder’s Facebook accounts commanded a mammoth following.

STUDENT POLITICS

Campus politics, too, has played it role.

The state’s gang culture has its roots in student politics of Panjab University (PU), Chandigarh, police say.

In 1985, a group led by student leader Prabhjinder Singh Dimpy gunned down rival Makhan Singh on the campus, the first political murder in the well-respected university. Dimpy, considered