Three arrested for conspiracy to attack singer Gulab Sidhu

Accused wanted to gain notoriety to extort money from bizmen, say police; Punjabi singer Gulab Sidhu had sparked controversy a few months earlier over a lyric in one of his songs — “sane sarpanch sara pind kutt du”

Three individuals were arrested for conspiring to attack Punjabi singer Gulab Sidhu, Barnala police said on Monday. The singer had sparked controversy a few months earlier over a lyric in one of his songs — “sane sarpanch sara pind kutt du.” This is what the accused wanted to target him for, Barnala senior superintendent of police Sarfaraz Alam said, adding that the accused also wanted to gain notoriety by attacking Sidhu and later extort money from businessmen and other influential people in the region.

The accused have already been facing three extortion cases, say police.

The arrested persons have been identified as Baljinder Singh alias Kinda, sarpanch of Kotdunna village, Balwinder Singh alias Binder and Gurwinder Singh alias Gill. All of them hail from Kotdunna village. They are on police remand for interrogation. According to the SSP, the suspects were caught late Saturday night on the Barnala-Bathinda road near Jalebi Bridge following a tip-off.

SSP Alam said the accused have a criminal record, including three extortion cases registered against them in 2022. He said the group intended to attack Sidhu during some public event. A .32-bore pistol with a magazine, three live cartridges (.32 bore), one dummy pistol, four mobile phones and a Maruti Swift car have been seized from them.

An FIR under Sections 308, 351 and 111 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) along with Sections 25, 54 and 59 of the Arms Act has been registered.