Farmers Movement Archive

Punjab SIT fails to find any leads in ‘conspiracy’ behind Singhu lynching

It has been nine days since Punjab Police special investigation team (SIT) was formed to probe an alleged conspiracy and circumstances in which Lakhbir Singh of Cheema Kalan village went to the Singhu border, it has failed to get find “any concrete” evidence in the case.The SIT has not even applied for the production warrant of key accused Nihang Sarabjit Singh Singh who had surrendered before the Haryana Police for brutally killing Lakhbir Singh on October 15 at Singhu border. According to some media reports, Sarabjit is allegedly behind taking Lakhbir from Cheema village to the Singhu border.Punjab director general of police (DGP) Iqbal Preet Singh Sahota constituted the SIT under the chairmanship of Varinder Kumar, additional director general of police (ADGP)-cum-director bureau of investigation (BOI), Punjab. Deputy inspector general of police (DIG-Ferozepur) Inderbir Singh and senior superintendent of police (SSP) Harvinder Singh Virk are members of the team. The team was formed after victim Lakhbir Singh’s sister Raj Kaur alleged that her brother was “allured by some unknown persons and taken to Singhu border”. Talking to HT over phone, the ADGP said so far they have not found “any concrete” evidence to establish who were behind sending Lakhbir to the Singhu border. “It seems he (Lakhbir) went there with someone, most probably, but we can’t make any concrete comment in this regard.” When asked how much time it will take to conclude the probe, he said: “It can take time as it is a complicated puzzle.”Sarabjit is a member of Baba Aman Singh’s Nihang sect, who is in controversy ever since his pictures with Union agriculture minister Narendra Tomar went viral. In the same pictures is Gurmeet Singh Pinky, former controversial Punjab Police cop. Sarabjit is so far, out of the SIT radar. When asked if the SIT has applied for Sarabjit’s production warrant, the ADGP said: “We haven’t done anything in this regard. For now, we are following some other leads.” It was also alleged by some anonymous people of Cheema village in some media reports that they had seen Sarabjit in Dhan Dhan Baba Sheikh Brahm Peer Ji Gaushala (cowshed) situated on the village outskirts. The police had also taken into their possession the cowshed’s CCTV footage.“No arrest has been made in the case, but we rounded up several people for questioning,” the ADGP said, adding “We have not found anything suspicious in the CCTV footage.

Hindustan Times

29-10-2021

Chandigarh