Punjab: 3 held for Moga Shiv Sena leader’s murder

Two of the ‘criminals’ injured in exchange of gunfire, say police; Moga SSP Ajay Gandhi says accused had multiple criminal cases in different places in Punjab and Himachal Pradesh

The Muktsar district police on Saturday arrested three persons involved in the murder of Shiv Sena (Bal Thakre group) leader Mangat Rai, officials said. The arrests were made after an encounter wherein two accused received gunshot injuries. The Moga police stated the murder was an outcome of personal enmity.

Mangat Rai, Moga district president of the Shiv Sena, was shot dead when he was out to buy groceries on Thursday night.

The accused have been identified as Arun alias Deepu, Rajvir Singh and Arun alias Sangha, all residents of Moga town. Muktsar senior superintendent of police (SSP) Akhil Chaudhary told reporters on Saturday that the accused were arrested from Malout in a joint operation by teams of crime investigation agency (CIA) from Moga and Muktsar.

The SSP said the assailants were overpowered after a brief exchange of fire in which Deepu and Sangha suffered injuries. “Sleuths from both CIA teams were following specific leads and the accused were spotted near the Malout bus stand. When they were asked to surrender, they opened fire at the police party. Deepu and Sangha sustained gunshot injuries in a retaliatory firing,” the SSP said, adding that both were taken to the Malout civil hospital from where they were further referred to Guru Gobind Singh Medical College in Faridkot.

Police officials said a preliminary probe revealed that the murder was an outcome of a personal enmity between the deceased and the accused. In a statement, the Moga police said that the accused were identified on the basis of an Instagram post. “A video surfaced on the social media wherein the three took responsibility for Mangat Ram’s murder. The culprits were then identified and tracked,” it added.

Moga SSP Ajay Gandhi said the accused had multiple criminal cases in different places in Punjab and Himachal Pradesh.

Mangat Rai, Moga district president of the Shiv Sena, was shot dead when he was out to buy groceries on Thursday night. A 12-year-old boy also sustained a gunshot wound in the firing, police said. The crime was recorded in a CCTV camera in which three motorbike-borne assailants were spotted.