EX-SSP had UK, US visas, was about to flee, says SIT

2015 BEHBAL KALAN FIRING Raid conducted at house of then Bajakhana SHO too

AMRITSAR/FARIDKOT : Hours after arresting former Moga senior superintendent of police Charanjit Singh Sharma in a case related to the killing of two antisacrilege protesters in October 14, 2015, police firing in Behbal Kalan, inspector general of police and special investigation team (SIT) member Kunwar Vijay Pratap Singh said Sharma was about to flee the country when he was nabbed from his residence in Hoshiarpur on Sunday. He said the former SSP had visas to travel to UK, US and Canada.

He said Sharma and former Fazilka SP Bikramjit Singh had been asked to appear before the SIT on January 29 after the Punjab and Haryana high court dismissed demand for a CBI probe into the FIRS registered against cops in Behbal Kalan firing incident.

“But after the SIT got a tip-off that Sharma was trying to flee, we carried out the arrest on Sunday,” said Singh. Talking to the media, Singh said Sharma was scheduled to flee the country by Sunday evening.

“Finding himself trapped by the police team, Sharma also attempted to escape by scaling a wall of his house,” said Singh.

Sharma was allegedly present at the place of anti-sacrilege agitation when the cops opened fire at protesters, said Singh.

A case has been registered against Sharma at the Bajakhana police station in 2015, he said.

“He is being questioned and

Finding himself trapped, Sharma also attempted to escape by scaling a wall of his house. He is being questioned. KUNWAR VIJAY PRATAP

SINGH, SIT member

will be produced in a court,” said Singh.

Replying to a query on arrest of other police personnel named in the First Information Report (FIR) registered under Section 302 (murder) and other relevant Sections of IPC, he said they are taking action against all those accused.

Sharma was brought to Amritsar for questioning after being arrested and raids have been conducted at the hideouts of other accused, including then Bajakhana station house officer Amarjit Singh Kular.

Other accused Bikramjit, who has been summoned on January 29, is currently posted as assistant commandant in the 4th Commando Battalion in Mohali.

The SIT will also summon inspector Pardeep Singh, who is also accused in the case. Sharma was questioned at the infamous Mall Mandi interrogation centre of Punjab Police in Amritsar where terrorists were interrogated.

VICTIMS’ KIN SEEK SPEEDY ACTION

Hailing Sharma’s arrest, the families Krishan Bhagwan Singh of Behbal Khurd and Gurjit Singh of Sarawan village, who were killed in the police firing, sought speedy action against other accused too. Sukhraj Singh, son of Krishan Bhagwan, said SIT has been working in a right direction but we want the culprits behind bars at the earliest.

Mohinder Singh, father of Gurjit Singh, too expressed satisfaction but demand that all the culprits be arrested soon.

Parallel Akal Takht jathedar and organiser of the Bargari morcha Dhian Singh Mand said that state government must arrest all culprits at the earliest.

Baljit Singh Daduwal, parallel jathedar of Takht Damdama Sahib, demanded arrest of a person who gave the firing orders, be it former CM Parkash Singh Badal or former director general of police (DGP) Sumedh Singh Saini.

AAP MLA from Kotkapura Kultar Singh Sandhwan said the government should expose faces of real culprits, including politicians and bureaucrats, behind the firing.

ON KARTARPUR CORRIDOR

The CM hailed opening of the Kartarpur corridor as a victory of the Congress, which had been pursuing the matter for long.

Amarinder said the process of land acquisition for the corridor — which will connect Darbar Sahib in Kartarpur, Pakistan, with Dera Baba Nanak shrine in Gurdaspur and facilitate visafree movement of Indian Sikh pilgrims on the occasion of 550th birth anniversary of Guru Nanak in November — had