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Punjab yet to file reply on gangster Anmol plea seeking to expedite trial in Moose Wala murder case
Anmol, the younger brother of jailed gangster and designated terrorist Lawrence Bishnoi, was deported from the United States in November last year and arrested by the National Investigation Agency (NIA)
The state of Punjab on Friday again failed to file its reply on a petition filed by the counsel for gangster Anmol Bishnoi before the Mansa district court in February, seeking to expedite the trial in the murder case of Punjabi singer Shubhdeep Singh Sidhu, popularly known as Sidhu Moose Wala.
Anmol, the younger brother of jailed gangster and designated terrorist Lawrence Bishnoi, was deported from the United States in November last year and arrested by the National Investigation Agency (NIA).
Investigators said that Anmol fled India in April 2022 using a fake passport, days before Moose Wala’s murder, allegedly to mislead investigating agencies about his involvement in the sensational assassination.
Anmol is currently lodged in Delhi’s Tihar jail. Mansa sessions judge Manjinder Singh heard the matter on Friday and directed the prosecution to submit a reply on the defence petition at the next hearing, scheduled for August 28.
Anmol’s lawyer, RS Behniwal, who also represents other accused in the case, had moved the trial court in Mansa on February 27, seeking to bring Anmol on a production warrant from Delhi after a formal arrest in the murder case.
Since then, the matter was heard by the court on eight different occasions, but the state is yet to furnish its reply.
Behniwal said Anmol has still not been taken into custody and questioned by the Punjab Police, delaying the bail applications of other accused in this murder case, including Manpreet Singh alias Bhau and Prabhdeep Singh.
According to Punjab Police officials, Anmol, who had been operating from abroad, is accused of being a key conspirator in the 2022 murder of Moose Wala and of providing logistical support and weapons to the assailants who shot dead the singer-turned Congress leader near his native village in Mansa on May 29, 2022.
Soon after Anmol was deported from the US and arrested, the Union home ministry barred police and other investigating agencies from taking his physical custody for one year, citing security concerns.
“In my application, it was stated that the state police should use the MHA’s provision that allows Anmol to be questioned by any agency in Tihar,” Behniwal said.
Meanwhile, the trial court partially recorded the statements of prosecution witnesses Baltej Singh and Gurlal Singh. Jailed gangster Lawrence Bishnoi and other accused appeared in the court via video conferencing.
