E-Paper
Mohali: Brother of ex-sarpanch gets 8-year jail in 2010 Bariyali death case
The CBI special court also acquitted Mohali mayor, 2 others citing failure of prosecution in proving their involvement beyond reasonable doubt
A special CBI court in Mohali has pronounced its verdict in a 15-year-old death case from Bariyali village in the Kharar area, sentencing Dilbar Singh, brother of the then village sarpanch Kulwant Singh, to eight years of imprisonment, while acquitting other accused, including Mohali mayor Amarjit Singh.
The court held Dilbar guilty under Section 304 (culpable homicide not amounting to murder) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) and sentenced him to eight years of imprisonment, along with a fine of ₹25,000.
The case dates back to December 19, 2010, when a dispute over vehicle parking in Bariyali village turned violent. According to the prosecution, firing took place from both sides during the clash. Rattan Singh sustained a gunshot injury to the head and later died at the Mohali civil hospital, while several persons from the accused side, including family members of Kulwant Singh and Dilbar Singh, suffered injuries. Some injured were referred to PGI Chandigarh.
Initially, police had registered an FIR at Balongi police station under sections related to murder, attempt to murder, unlawful assembly, criminal conspiracy and the Arms Act. The FIR, lodged by Harjinder Singh, son of the deceased, stated that the incident occurred around 9.15 pm when his cousin Gurpreet Singh went to collect documents from a vehicle parked outside the house of Kulwant Singh, who was the sarpanch at that time. A confrontation followed, which led to gunfire.
The FIR named Kulwant and Dilbar as the persons who fired shots and accused Amarjit Singh of involvement in a criminal conspiracy. Police later also booked Balbir Singh Sidhu, who was then the sitting Congress MLA from Kharar, under charges of criminal conspiracy.
On October 12, 2012, the case was handed over to the CBI by the Punjab and Haryana high court. The court recorded that the Mohali senior superintendent of police (SSP) had failed to honour his undertaking that the special investigation team (SIT) would conduct a fair probe.
During the trial, the court found that the prosecution failed to prove the involvement of several accused beyond reasonable doubt. On Saturday, the court acquitted Amarjit Singh, former sarpanch Kulwant Singh and Jatinder Singh of all charges. The court accepted the defence plea that Amarjit Singh was not present at the spot at the time of the incident.
Harjinder Singh had earlier alleged that the investigation was not fair and claimed that police officials pressured him to enter into a compromise. He also alleged that political influence affected the probe. Court records indicate that the motive behind murder stemmed from long - standing land dispute and litigation related to the appointment of Kulwant as village sarpanch. A detailed judgement of the case is still awaited.
