New SIT on Maur bomb blasts starts probe, holds first meet

The high court on October 18 had directed the director general of police (DGP) to ensure completion of probe within three months in the January 31, 2017, explosions that left seven persons, including five children, dead.

The new special investigation team (SIT) on the Maur twin bomb blasts constituted on the orders of the Punjab and Haryana high court held its first meeting in Bathinda on Friday.

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The high court on October 18 had directed the director general of police (DGP) to ensure completion of probe within three months in the January 31, 2017, explosions that left seven persons, including five children, dead.

Friday’s meeting was held at the office of SIT head and additional director general of police (ADGP law and order) Ishwar Singh and was attended by its members — counter-intelligence and Rupnagar range inspector general (IG) Amit Parshad, Bathinda range IG Arun Kumar Mittal and Bathinda senior superintendent of police (SSP) Nanak Singh.

IG Mittal said they will start their probe afresh and will look into all aspects.

Having remained clueless in the case for over a year, the earlier SIT headed by DIG Ranbir Singh Khatra had produced four persons — who worked as fitters and painters in a Dera Sacha Sauda workshop in Sirsa — as prosecution witnesses in a Talwandi Sabo court in February last year.

The HC had ordered to set up new SIT on a petition by Gurjeet Singh Patran of Patiala who demanded handing over of the probe to the National Investigation Agency (NIA) or the Central Bureau of Investigation for speedy and fair investigation.

The blasts took place in a car at an election rally by Congress candidate Harminder Singh Jassi, four days before the voting for the Punjab assembly polls. Jassi had a narrow escape in the incident. Jassi’s daughter is married to son of now jailed dera head Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh.