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Goindwal jail clash: Superintendent among 5 officials discharged from conspiracy charges
Two days after being arrested for alleged criminal conspiracy in the clash in which two gangsters were killed allegedly by their rivals inside Goindwal Sahib central jail, a local court has discharged five officers, including the superintendent, from the charges.
Two days after being arrested for alleged criminal conspiracy in the clash in which two gangsters were killed allegedly by their rivals inside Goindwal Sahib central jail, a local court has discharged five officers, including the superintendent, from the charges.
On Monday, the jail superintendent Iqbal Singh Brar, additional superintendent Vijay Kumar, assistant superintendent Harish Kumar, and assistant sub-inspectors (ASIs) Joginder Singh and Harchand Singh were arrested and sent to two-day police remand under the charges of 120-B (criminal conspiracy) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) — the case which was initially registered under Sections 302 (murder), 307 (attempted murder) and various sections of Prisons Act against seven gangsters of Lawrence Bishnoi gang.
The jail official’s Monday arrest came hours after they were granted bail by a local court in another related case in which video clips purportedly showing gangsters belonging to the Lawrence Bishnoi gang celebrating the deaths of their rival gang members in the prison had gone viral.
The videos had gone viral on Sunday which prompted the state government to take stern action against the jail officers. They were booked under various Sections of the IT Act and the IPC. On Monday, the officers were produced in a Khadoor Sahib court which granted them bail while refusing their police remand.
After their bails, they were held for their part in the alleged conspiracy in the February 26 case in which gangster Mandeep Singh alias Tufan and gangster Manmohan Singh alias Mohna—both associates of Jaggu Bhagwanpuria—were killed by the gang members of Bishnoi gang.
Police had said their initial investigation had found the connivance of the jail officials for the supply of mobile phones and iron weapons inside the prison to the gangsters involved in the clash.
“On Thursday, police presented their discharge report in the court of judicial magistrate first class (JMIC), Itu Sodhi, saying they have not found any evidence against the jail officials in the February 26 clash case. The court has ordered to discharge all the officers in the case,” said advocate Deepak Arora, one of the counsels of the jail officers.
Tarn Taran senior superintendent of police (SSP) Gurmeet Singh Chauhan said they have been discharged from the charges of criminal conspiracy while the case against him related to the viral video was still under investigation. “They have been on bail in the viral video case,” he added.
An official of the Punjab Prisons department said, “On Wednesday, the officers and staff members of all the prisons in Punjab protested against the arrest of the officers. We demanded that the officers should be discharged from the case, which has been registered without any evidence.”
Sources said the police department has yielded to the demand of the prison department.
