2 Punjab module shooters arrested from Hoshiarpur
With the arrest of the duo, who belong to Faridkot district, five of the six accused have been nabbed and search is on for sixth shooter: Cops
DERA FOLLOWER’S KILLING
BATHINDA : A week after six assailants shot dead Pardeep Singh, a Dera Sacha Sauda follower accused in the 2015 Bargari sacrilege cases, Punjab Police arrested two shooters, Manpreet Singh Manni and Bhupinder Singh Goldy, in Hoshiarpur on Thursday.
Both were nabbed when they were preparing to flee to the temple town of Chintpurni in Himachal Pradesh, Faridkot senior superintendent of police (SSP) Rajpal Singh said.
“Following a specific intelligence input, the two were arrested from the outskirts of Hoshiarpur. Our information suggested that both were staying in Hoshiarpur for 2-3 days. They were planning to reach Chintpurni by using a public transport bus to avoid being recognised,” said the SSP.
Police officials privy to the investigation claim no weapon was found in the possession of the accused. With the arrest of the duo, who belong to Faridkot district, five of the six accused have been caught and a search is on for the sixth shooter, said the Faridkot range inspector general of police (IGP) PK Yadav. Manni and Goldy belong to the Punjabbased module of Canada-based Goldy Brar’s gang, while the three shooters of the Haryana module, including two juveniles, and Jitender alias Jeetu were arrested from Patiala by the Delhi Police special cell in less than 24 hours of the murder on November 10.
One held for providing logistic support Announcing the breakthrough, Punjab director general of police (DGP) Gaurav Yadav tweeted on Thursday that the Manni and Goldy were arrested from Hoshiarpur in an operation conducted jointly by the Faridkot and Hoshiarpur police teams along with counter intelligence (CI) members of Jalandhar police.
“Faridkot police have also arrested Baljit Singh, alias Manna, for providing logistic support to three shooters from the Haryana module,” the DGP said. SSP Rajpal said Manna had arranged a stay for alleged shooters Jeetu and both juveniles at Jaitu town of Faridkot and their questioning reveal more information.
Yadav said that Goldy Brar, an accomplice of fugitive Harvinder Singh, alias Rinda, and jailed gangster Lawrence Bishnoi, is the mastermind in the crime. Police sources said the modules were being handled independently by Goldy Brar.
“Special teams were hunting for the Punjab module gangsters after leads based on intelligence inputs. They were finally caught in Hoshiarpur,” a police official said.
Pardeep Singh was an accused in two cases of sacrilege after a ‘bir’ of Guru Granth Sahib was stolen from Burj Jawahar Singh Wala village on June 1, 2015, and after torn pages of a ‘bir’ were found scattered near Bargari gurdwara on October 12, 2015. Out on bail in the cases, he was shot dead in his shop in Kotkapura town of Faridkot district on November 10.