Akali worker with criminal taint, accomplice shot dead in Patti
Police analysing Facebook posts of gangs claiming responsibility for the killings, says SSP
TARN TARAN: Two car-borne assailants shot dead a gangster and his accomplice in the border town of Patti in Tarn Taran district on Thursday morning, police said, adding that the third person accompanying them was injured in the firing.
The deceased were identified as Amandeep Singh, alias Aman Fauji (28), who was also an Akali worker, and Prabhjit Singh, alias Pooran (27), while their accomplice Shamsher Singh, alias Shera (30) of Patti, was injured.
All three were returning after paying obeisance at a peer dargah (saint’s tomb) when the assailants opened fire at them at Nadohar roundabout in Patti town at 6.45am, the police said. Fauji and Pooran died on the spot while Shera was rushed to a private hospital in Amritsar where his condition is stated to be stable, police said.
Hours after the incident, a Facebook post from the account on one Ravi Dhaliwal, tagging 12 other users, including gangster Goli Kazikot, claimed that the killings were the handiwork of the Jaggu Bhagwanpuria gang. Bhagwanpuria is lodged in a jail. The victims were the supporters of the Bhagwan Kazikot gang, rival of the Goli Kazikot gang.
Later, another FB post from Goli Kazikot’s account read that they don’t have anything to do with the killings.
Another post from Preet Sekhon Amritsaria account read that Fauji was executed by their men, threatening that
those against them will meet the same fate.
Senior superintendent of police (SSP) Dhruman H Nimbale said they were analysing the Facebook posts claiming responsibilities for the killings. “Preet Sekhon is not linked to any gang but he is accused of killing a bouncer in Amritsar. Our teams are working to trace him,” the SSP said.
He said Fauji was a gangster and had been facing five criminal cases, including two of attempt to murder. “As per our information, Fauji was also involved in drug smuggling. Similarly, Shera was facing a case under the NDPS Act, while Prabjit had no criminal background,” he said.
The SSP said that a case was registered under Sections 302 (murder) and 34 (acts done by several persons in furtherance of common intention) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC), besides Sections 25-54-59 of the Arms Act against unidentified persons at the Patti city police station.