Sikh activist’s murderers behind another killing in Gwalior: Police
According to the police, with the arrest of two key operatives of gangster-turned-terrorist Arsh Dalla for their involvement in Gurpreet Singh Hari Nau’s murder, they have thwarted at least four targeted killings of prominent persons in major cities.
The two shooters of Canada-based Arsh Dalla’s gang, who were nabbed in Kharar on Saturday in connection with murder of Kotkapura-based Sikh activist Gurpreet Singh, alias Bhodi, in Faridkot last month, had also killed a convicted criminal in Gwalior, Madhya Pradesh, on the directions of Dalla on November 7, the police said on Sunday.
Faridkot senior superintendent of police (SSP) Pragya Jain, during a press conference, said the shooters — Anmolpreet Singh, alias Vishal (23), a resident of Bhadorh in Barnala, and Navjot Singh, alias Neetu (26), a resident of Nijjar road in Kharar — had returned after killing Jaswant Singh Gill in Gwalior on Thursday. “Gill was convicted for a murder (in 2016) and had been undergoing life imprisonment. He was out on parole for 15 days when he was killed by both shooters. Both suspects returned from Madhya Pradesh after committing the crime and were apprehended near Kharar in a joint operation of the Faridkot police with the Mohali unit of the State Special Operation Cell (SSOC) and the Anti-Gangster Task Force (AGTF),” said SSP Jain.
Both were caught from a lounge inside Swaraj Enclave in Kharar, officials familiar with the development said. Two sophisticated firearms, including a Zigana 9mm pistol along with seven live cartridges and a .30-bore pistol along with four live cartridges, ₹27,500 and a fake Aadhar card were seized from them.
The SSP said the police have also arrested Balbir Singh, alias Kalu, brother of Navjot Singh, for providing logistic support to criminals, from Barnala on Friday. The arrested persons have a criminal history.
The development came in less than a month after the arrest of three members of a recce module in this case. With this, six persons have been arrested so far in this case.
According to the police, with the arrest of two key operatives of gangster-turned-terrorist Arsh Dalla for their involvement in Gurpreet Singh Hari Nau’s murder, they have thwarted at least four targeted killings of prominent persons in major cities. The police didn’t give details of those who were about to be targeted by the criminals.
Activist Gurpreet Singh was shot dead on October 9 while he was returning home from a village gurdwara on his bike. SSP Jain said preliminary investigations revealed that Arsh Dalla tasked Navjot with targeting Gurpreet Singh Hari Nau, who ran a YouTube channel (Hari Nau Talks). “Dalla asked Navjot to rope in more associates so he involved Anmolpreet. Dalla provided a Glock pistol along with ammunition and a motorcycle to the accused,” Jain added.
The SSP said both the shooters were provided hideouts by Arsh Dalla. After the crime, the shooters changed several hideouts in cities including Amritsar, SBS Nagar, Himachal-Punjab border, Chandigarh, Mohali and Kharar. The SSP added that Dalla provided both the shooters with heroin and cash which they retrieved mostly from public places in Mohali.
Earlier, the police had claimed Gurpreet was killed allegedly at the behest of radical leader and Khadoor Sahib MP Amritpal Singh, currently lodged in Dibrugarh jail under the National Security Act (NSA). Amritpal has not been questioned yet in the matter.
Wanted for firing in Zirakpur
The SSP said both the shooters were involved in a firing and extortion incident in Zirakpur on October 18. The accused pasted a poster, carrying Dalla’s name, at the main entrance of a businessman’s house and fired gunshots. They were captured in a CCTV footage from a nearby house. A case was registered at the Zirakpur police station.
