SIT tells police, admn top brass to appear before it again

CHANDIGARH:A special investigation team (SIT) of the Punjab Police, which is investigating the incidents of sacrilege of the Guru Granth Sahib and the subsequent firing on protesters in 2015, has summoned top brass of the police and other civilian officers, again, on February 12 (Tuesday). They had previously been questioned in October 2018.

Those summoned again are the then Ludhiana police commissioner and inspector general, Paramraj Singh Umranangal; the then IG Jatinder Jain; the then DIG Amar Singh Chahal; the then SP Paramjit Singh Pannu of the Ludhiana commissionerate, the then Kotkapura SDM, Harjit Singh Sandhu, and others. A source said SIT had directed all these officials to appear before it on Chandigarh.

This development came after the arrest of former Moga SSP, Charanjit Sharma who has been sent to 14-day judicial custody in Behbal Kalan firing case on February 7. He was arrested from his Hoshiarpur residence on January 27 by the special investigation team (SIT) of the Punjab Police. He has been in police remand since.

In August last year, the names of then Moga SSP Charanjit Singh Sharma (now retired), Bikramjit Singh, Pardip and Amarjit were added to the FIR registered on October 21, 2015, under Sections 302 (murder) and 307 (attempt to murder) and 34 (acts done by several persons in furtherance of common intention) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) and the Arms Act at the Bajakhana police station in Faridkot, following chief minister Captain Amarinder Singh’s directive.

THE MOVE FOLLOWS THE ARREST OF FORMER MOGA SSP CHARANJIT SHARMA BY THE SPECIAL INVESTIGATION TEAM