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Two held for Moga sarpanch’s murder; AAP MLA denies hand in killing
Victim’s kin lift midnight dharna after police assurance; AAP’s Sukhanand claims murder was fallout of personal dispute involving victim’s live-in partner.
The Moga police have arrested two persons in connection with the murder of Harpinder Singh, alias Happy, the sarpanch of Patto Hira Singh village. The arrests came late on Friday night, prompting the victim’s family and protesters, including former Congress MLA Kulbir Singh Zira, to lift a sit-in protest (dharna) on the Baghapurana-Kotkapura road.
Harpinder was gunned down around 11am on Thursday outside his gym when assailants in an SUV fired eight to 10 rounds at him. While the police confirmed the arrests, they have withheld the suspects’ identities.
Political row erupts
The case took a political turn after a woman, identified as Rupinder Kaur, released a viral video accusing local AAP MLA Amritpal Singh Sukhanand of shielding the killers and threatening the victim. Refuting the allegations in a Facebook statement, Sukhanand termed the claims “politically motivated”. He alleged the murder was the result of a domestic dispute, claiming that Rupinder, the wife of one Manpreet Singh, was in a live-in relationship with the sarpanch.
“Manpreet and Rupinder had a strained marriage and had approached the police earlier. I only intervened to mediate their family dispute. It is wrong to politicise a murder triggered by personal enmity,” Sukhanand said.
Police action and motive
Baghapurana DSP Dalbir Singh told the protesters at midnight that an FIR has been lodged based on the complaint of the victim’s father, Jaswinder Singh. The complaint names four accused and six unidentified persons. Two of the named suspects are currently in custody, and police have assured the family that the remaining assailants will be arrested by Monday.
Moga SSP Ajay Gandhi had earlier said that Harpinder had a criminal record and was involved in 10 to 12 cases. While the police maintain the murder was a “fallout of personal enmity”, they are yet to officially confirm if the domestic dispute cited by the MLA is the primary motive.
