Gurdaspur cop killings: Suspect killed in encounter fired at policemen, claims accused

Gurdaspur, Feb 27 (PTI) One of the three men arrested by police for the murder of police personnel in Gurdaspur laid the blame of the killings on the other two accused, one of whom was killed in a police encounter.

Police have identified Ranjit Singh (19), Inderjit Singh (21), and Dilawar Singh (19) for their alleged involvement in killing the two police personnel on February 22, suspected to have been done at the behest of their Pakistan-based handlers backed by the spy agency ISI.

While he was being taken to the Civil Hospital in Gurdaspur for medical examination on Friday, Dilawar told reporters that Ranjit and Inderjit allegedly fired at the two cops. The two men, he claimed, took him along for it.

Assistant sub-inspector Gurnam Singh and home guard Ashok Kumar were found dead on Sunday with gunshot wounds inside a checkpost in Adhian village, about 2 km from the International Border with Pakistan.

Ranjit, a resident of Adhian village here, was shot dead in an exchange of fire with police on Wednesday after he fled from their custody. His family and political leaders have raised questions about the encounter, some calling for a judicial probe into the matter.

Speaking to reporters in Gurdaspur on Friday, Dilawar also demanded a fresh post-mortem by the Post Graduate Institute of Medical Education and Research.

Ranjit's family has refused to accept his body for cremation. His uncle Gurinder Singh demanded a CBI probe into the death.

Ranjit's mother Sukhwinder Kaur had earlier said that her son was picked up by police on Tuesday for questioning but later she came to know that he was shot dead.

The family had also alleged that the CCTV cameras were taken away by police from Ranjit's village.

Political leaders continued to meet the family of Ranjit at his residence in Adhian village.

Congress leaders Partap Singh Bajwa and Sukhjinder Singh Randhawa met the family of Ranjit in Gurdaspur on Friday.

After meeting the grieving family members, he said their version of events raises serious and disturbing questions that cannot be ignored in a democratic society governed by the rule of law.

"The 50-km belt around the International Border fence falls under the jurisdiction of the Border Security Force (BSF), which is a joint responsibility of the Centre and the Punjab government. Therefore, accountability cannot be deflected or diluted," Bajwa said.

He strongly backed the family's demand that the post-mortem examination be conducted either at PGI Chandigarh or AIIMS Delhi, as they have lost faith in the Punjab Police.

"When a family expresses such deep mistrust in the state machinery, it reflects the gravity of the situation. I fully support their demand for an independent and credible post-mortem," he added.

Bajwa further demanded that the investigation be handed over either to a sitting judge of the high court or to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) to ensure transparency and impartiality.

Congress MP Sukhjinder Singh Randhawa wrote to Union Home Minister Amit Shah, highlighting the conflicting accounts surrounding Ranjit's death.

"I refer, in particular, to the sequence of events in which the Punjab Police have claimed that a 19-year-old youth allegedly connected with the crime was killed in an 'encounter', while his mother has publicly asserted that he had earlier been picked up from their home.

"I do not wish to prejudge the facts; however, the existence of such sharply conflicting public versions has created a credibility deficit that the state police, acting alone, will find difficult to overcome. In matters with potential national security dimensions, the appearance of procedural opacity can be as damaging as the reality," he wrote.

On Thursday, Shiromani Akali Dal leader Bikram Singh Majithia and Congress MLA Sukhpal Singh Khaira visited the family of Ranjit Singh. PTI CHS SKY SKY