CHANDIGARH: Punjab Police has busted a terror module linked to Jaish-e-Mohammad (JeM) and apprehended three Jammu and Kashmir (J&K)-based persons in connection with the abduction and murder of a cab driver, Anil Kumar. In another incident, two associates of the Lawrence Bishnoi gang were arrested by the police.
Director General of Police, Punjab, Gaurav Yadav, said here today that those arrested have been identified as Sahil Bashir (19), a resident of Handwara Langate village in Kupwara; Munish Singh alias Ansh (22), of Kotli in Doda village; and Aijaz Ahmed Khan alias Wasim (22), of Manjpura village in Kalamabad.
The police have also recovered the snatched white-coloured Maruti Swift Dzire (PB01-D-6299) and the .32 bore country-made pistol used in the crime from the possession of the arrested accused persons.
In her complaint, Anil Kumar’s wife, Sudha Devi, stated that her husband drives a taxi and, on Friday morning, like every day, at around 8:30 a.m., he left home to take a ride from Kharar to Railway Station, Chandigarh. Later, she kept on calling her husband continuously but both his mobile phones were switched off, she stated.
Yadav said that in connection with the abduction and murder of cab driver Anil Kumar, a resident of Nayagaon in Mohali, a case was promptly registered after a preliminary investigation revealed that three unidentified persons, who had hired the cab from Kharar, had forcibly snatched his vehicle.
Considering the grave and sensitive nature of the matter, multiple police teams were constituted, and, acting with speed and precision, all three accused were apprehended, he said.
Yadav added that the arrested accused, Sahil Bashir, is a wanted individual in an Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA) and Arms Act case registered at Police Station Qalamabad, Handwara, in J&K. His brother, Aijaz Ahmad, had earlier been arrested with a cache of weapons and materials linked to JeM, he said, while adding that both are identified as Over Ground Workers (OGWs) of the JeM.
Sharing operation details, Deputy Inspector General of Police (DIG) Ropar Range, Harcharan Singh Bhullar, said that acting swiftly on the complaint, separate teams of Mohali Police were formed under the supervision of SP City Sirivenella, SP Investigation Saurav Jindal, and DSP City-1 Prithvi Singh Chahal.
The police teams, led by Incharge CIA staff Harminder Singh and SHO Police Station Naya Gaon Satnam Singh, jointly took action and, using technical and human resources, the accused were arrested from Bus Stand, Batala and Gurdaspur areas, he said.
He said that during interrogation, the arrested accused persons confessed to having fatally shot the driver after an altercation and later disposed of the body in the Mohali area.
Sharing more details, Senior Superintendent of Police of SAS Nagar, Harmandeep Hans, said that the interrogation of the accused revealed that they had booked the cab on the pretext of going from Kharar to Chandigarh railway station and had first asked the taxi driver, Anil Kumar, to go to Airport Road via Phase 3B2, Mohali. When Anil Kumar took the accused to Kandala village, they took Kumar out of the vehicle and shot him dead before escaping with the car and other belongings, he said.
He said that following disclosures of the arrested accused persons, police teams have retrieved the mortal remains of deceased Kumar. Three bullet shells were also recovered from near the dead body, he added.
Initially, a case dated August 31 was registered under section 127(6) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) at Police Station Naya Gaon, while sections 140(3), 103, and 304 of the BNS and section 25 of the Arms Act have now been added in this case.
In another case, Muktsar Police apprehended two associates of the Lawrence Bishnoi gang and recovered five illegal weapons from their possession.
DGP Yadav said that those arrested have been identified as Gurdeep Singh of Badhni Kalan in Moga and Gursewak Singh alias Mota of Manu Ke Sandhu village in Jagraon, Ludhiana. The recovered weapons include four .32 bore country-made pistols and one .30 bore country-made pistol along with 10 magazines.
He said that preliminary investigation has revealed that the duo arrested persons are linked with the gang and are actively involved in furthering its criminal activities. Further investigation is ongoing to establish forward and backward linkages in this case, he said, while adding that more arrests and recoveries are likely in the coming days.
Sharing operation details, Senior Superintendent of Police of Muktsar Sahib, Dr Akhil Chaudhary, said that acting on specific intelligence, a special naka was laid by CIA Malout. During checking, the police apprehended two suspects carrying a blue kit bag, he said, while adding that upon searching the kit, police teams recovered the illegal weapons.
Chaudhary said that the probe has revealed that accused Gurdeep Singh came into contact with Harjot Singh alias Neela and Jagdeep Singh alias Jagga, both close associates of Lawrence Bishnoi.
“On Neela’s instructions, Gursewak and Gurdeep travelled to Indore, where an unidentified person delivered five pistols to them,” he said, while adding that out of these, two pistols were retained by the accused, while the remaining three were to be supplied to Neela.
Meanwhile, Harjot Singh alias Neela and Jagdeep Singh alias Jagga are wanted criminals, with 12 and 10 FIRs registered against them in different districts and states respectively. In this regard, a case has been registered under section 25 of the Arms Act at Police Station Kabarwala in Muktsar.