AMRITSAR: Two Punjab police personnel were found dead with bullet injuries inside a police check post near the Indo-Pakistan border in Andhian village of Gurdaspur district, officers aware of the matter said on Sunday.
The check post is situated near the Border Security Force (BSF) outpost in Andhian under the Dorangla Police Station limits, the officers said. The deceased were identified as assistant sub-inspector Gurnam Singh and constable Ashok Kumar.
Gurdaspur Senior Superintendent of Police Aditya said, “This morning, we learned that two persons were injured in a gunshot incident. Our cordon team and technical and forensic teams have visited the site. We are investigating all angles of the case. The investigation is ongoing and being handled carefully.”
Adhian Sarpanch Kamaljit Singh, who first saw the bodies at the check post, said he received a phone call in the morning from the SHO of Dorangala police station, informing him that personnel at the police outpost were not answering their phones and asked him to check.
He said when he reached the outpost around 8am, he found the bodies of both the policemen lying inside the outpost, each with gunshot injuries. The outpost had no doors. He immediately informed the police about the incident and the police reached there within a few minutes, he said.
{{/usCountry}}He said when he reached the outpost around 8am, he found the bodies of both the policemen lying inside the outpost, each with gunshot injuries. The outpost had no doors. He immediately informed the police about the incident and the police reached there within a few minutes, he said.
{{/usCountry}}Describing the scene, the Sarpanch said that the ASI was found lying on his one side with both hands in his pockets, and an electric heater lying nearby. There were visible signs of bleeding from his ear and near one eye. The second personnel was found lying under a quilt with a gunshot wound to the head, the Sarpanch said.
Police have registered case under relevant sections against unknown persons, officers said.
There were rumours that the two cops killed each other but investigators said they were yet to ascertain the sequence of events.
Meanwhile, Gurdaspur Member of Parliament and former deputy chief minister Sukhjinder Singh Randhawa expressed concern over the killing of the two police personnel and demanded an independent investigation by the Union home ministry to uncover the truth.
The Congress MP accused the police of allegedly terming it a “mutual shootout”. According to a footage from the spot, both officers were either sitting or asleep at the time of the incident. “Most concerning, is the claim that a rifle was found behind the bed, making it physically impossible for it to have been used in the firing as alleged.”
“This is not merely a discrepancy; it is a fundamental contradiction,” Randhawa said. “If the officers were not in a position to defend themselves, the shoot out theory collapses. The truth must be told.”
The senior Congress leader appealed to the Union home ministry to immediately take over the case to ensure an independent, impartial, and time-bound probe.
Any attempt to suppress facts or shield those responsible would severely damage public trust in the administration, the MP said.
Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) senior leader Bikram Singh Majithia shared a video clip of the crime scene. He said in a social media post, “Although Punjab Police, as usual, is making different claims regarding the deaths of these police personnel, a thorough and in-depth investigation is essential to uncover the truth”.
“We demand an impartial investigation into the deaths of these police personnel by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI). The home minister Bhagwant Mann and the ad-hoc DGP have failed to prevent such incidents that are occurring on a daily basis,” Majithia added.