E-Paper
Mohali: 2 Bishnoi gang members held after gunfight in Dera Bassi
Two Lawrence Bishnoi gang operatives were arrested after a shootout in Dera Bassi. Sumit Bishnoi, wanted for murder, was injured; Pankaj Malik was also caught.
Two operatives of the Lawrence Bishnoi gang were arrested after a brief exchange of fire on Gulabgarh Road in Dera Bassi on Tuesday.
The accused have been identified as Sumit Bishnoi, of Rajasthan’s Hanumangarh district. He is the main accused in the broad daylight murder of Mahavir Sihag, a farmer who was shot dead by three bike-borne assailants in May this year. Sumit was also on the Rajasthan police’s wanted list and carried a bounty of ₹50,000 on his head.
The second accused is Pankaj Malik of Haryana’s Sonepat district.
Senior superintendent of police (SSP) Harmandeep Hans said that following a tip-off, a team of the Mohali police and anti-gangster task force gheraoed the locality where the duo was staying in a paying guest accommodation.
“As soon as our teams reached the spot and tried to arrest them, Sumit opened fire. Police retaliated, leaving him with a bullet wound in the left leg,” said SSP Hans. The officers recovered a .32 pistol and four live cartridges from the spot. Police have shifted Sumit to the civil hospital for treatment.
As per preliminary probe, a foreign-based gangster Arzoo Bishnoi had been handling the accused. “Sumit acted as a shooter on Arzoo’s direction in Mahavir Sihag’s murder, while Pankaj provided logistical support. They were living under a fake ID in the PG,” the SSP said.
