E-Paper
1992 fake encounter in Amritsar: 31 years on, CBI court convicts three Punjab cops
Of the nine accused, which included one police informer, five died during trial, while one cop was declared PO
Nearly 31 years after three persons were killed in a fake encounter in Amritsar, the special CBI court of RK Gupta on Friday held the cops guilty and convicted three former police officers. Of the nine named accused in the case, which includes one police informer, five died during the trial, while ASI Bhupinder Singh was declared a proclaimed offender.
Two ex-cops, inspector Dharam Singh and DSP Gurdev Singh, have been arrested, while the third accused, inspector Surinder Singh, who had sought medical exemption from hearing, has been asked to appear before the court on September 14, when the quantum of sentence will be pronounced.
Of the nine accused, SI Ram Lubhaya, HC Satbir Singh, police informer Daljit Singh alias Motu, inspector Harbhajan Ram, and SI Amrik Singh, died during the trial.
Of the 55 witnesses cited by the CBI, statements of only 27 witnesses could be recorded. Many witnesses also passed away during the trial. Marred by delays, the first witness’s statement was recorded in 2016.
The case began when three victims -- Harjit Singh, Lakhwinder Singh, and Jaspinder Singh- all in their mid-20s — were killed in a police encounter on May 12, 1992.
Harjit’s father filed a writ before the Punjab and Haryana high court, alleging that his son had been forcibly taken into custody on April 29, 1992, near Thathian bus stand in Sathiala, Amritsar. He further claimed that Harjit Singh was held at Mall Mandi interrogation centre in Amritsar.
In response to the allegations, the high court deputed a warrant officer to secure Harjit’s release. On May 30, 1997, the high court transferred the investigation of the case to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI).
The CBI began its probe in 1998. Their probe found that Harjit was abducted by police informer Daljit Singh alias Motu, head constable Satbir Singh and other cops on April 29, 1992. He was killed in a police encounter on May 12, 1992. The police party responsible for this act was headed by sub-inspector Dharam Singh, who was then the station house officer (SHO) at Police Station, Lopoke.
The bodies of the victims were not handed over to their families but instead were cremated by the police as unclaimed, stated the victims’ families in their plea, said public prosecutor Ashok Bagoria.
CBI presented charges under various sections of the Indian Penal Code, including under sections 364 (kidnapping or abducting in order to murder), 120-B (criminal conspiracy), 302 (murder), and 218 (public servant framing incorrect record or writing with intent to save person from punishment or property from forfeiture).
