CHANDIGARH: The Punjab government on Friday transferred Amritsar Commissioner of Police Gurpreet Singh Bhullar, days after he addressed a press conference on busting cross-border terror modules.
The Punjab Police had on Tuesday said it had busted two ISI-backed terror modules and apprehended nine accused, including four juveniles, with arms and ammunition.
Bhullar had reportedly said that some of the arrested accused had visited Delhi’s Jantar Mantar, conducted a recce of the area, with plans to target the protesters with petrol bombs.
Curiously, the state government was quick to issue a clarification saying the police commissioner had neither stated that the accused had taken part in the protests and nor that the protesters had any links with the terror module. Clips from the presser—reportedly edited to give viewers the impression that he had linked the terror module to the agitators—soon went viral on social media, adding fuel to the raging political fire.
The timing of Bhullar’s transfer is bound to raise eyebrows, former Union minister Bittu tweeted. “Did his accurate revelations about the alleged Jantar Mantar plot trouble Kejriwal?” Bittu wrote.
While there is no official word on the reason behind Bhullar’s transfer, Harmanbir Singh, Amritsar DIG (Border Range) has been given the additional charge as the Amritsar Commissioner of Police. Bhullar will report to the office of Punjab DGP Gaurav Yadav till further orders.