Punjab Police killed two gangsters involved in Sidhu moosewala's murder

|HT|

The encounter between Punjab Police and two gangsters involved in Punjabi singer Sidhu Moose Wala’s murder on May 29 ended with the duo’s death at Hoshiar Nagar village near Attari border in Amritsar on Wednesday, police sources said. Gangsters Manpreet Singh, alias Mannu, and Jagroop Singh, alias Roopa, who are key accused in the Moose Wala killing at Mansa, had been hiding in a farmhouse of the village.

Additional director general of police (ADGP) Pramod Ban, who heads the Punjab Police’s Anti-Gangster Task Force, said, “Sidhu Moose Wala was killed on May 29. All those involved in planning the killing and other masterminds were arrested. Two shooters who were in the Bolero were absconding. Today, both the gangsters, Jagroop Singh, alias Roopa, and Manpreet Singh, alias Mannu, have been killed in exchange of fire.”

He said they have recovered an AK-47 rifle and a .30mm pistol from the house where they were hiding. “We have also recovered a bag and it will be opened after forensic examination. Our team will inspect the spot,” Ban said. Heavy police force of Amritsar rural district, Amritsar commissionerate and Tarn Taran district were deployed. Hundreds of rounds were fired from both the sides.

A senior police official at the spot said some policemen also received bullet injuries.

Earlier, Punjab Police teams rushed to the spot with arms and ammunition. People were not allowed to go on the road leading to the farmhouse. Punjabi singer turned Congress leader Shubhdeep Singh Sidhu, popularly known as Sidhu Moose Wala, was shot dead by six shooters just 4km from his house at Jawaharke village in Mansa district on May 29.

The police said Mannu, who was in a Toyota Corolla car along with Roopa, fired at Moose Wala with an AK-47. Soon after the incident, the duo fled . Later, they snatched an Alto car, which was found abandoned in Moga district. A henchman of gangster Lawrence Bishnoi, Mannu of Kussa village in Moga district, is facing 13 cases, including four murder cases in various districts of Punjab. Since September last year, Mannu has carried out three murders and made two murders bids on the directions of Bishnoi and Canada-based Goldy Brar. This is besides Moose Wala’s murder. The two Punjab module shooters involved in the killing of Moose Wala were spotted moving around in the rural area of Moga three weeks after the crime even as the state police groped in the dark for leads.

Closed-circuit television (CCTV) camera footage that recently emerged from Samalsar in Moga district showed Jagroop Singh Roopa and Manpreet Singh Mannu riding a stolen bike on June 21. Samalsar is around 100 km from Jawaharke village in Mansa district, where Moose Wala was shot dead by six-shooters on May 29.

Officials privy to the case said, “It seems they took shelter in neighbouring districts of Mansa as they were spotted in a CCTV footage at Samalsar on June 21. It was found that they were travelling on a stolen bike. As per the CCTV trail, they moved towards Tarn Taran district,” he added. Police have identified six shooters and claimed that two modules of shooters were involved in the killing. The shooters were said to have been in direct touch with Canada-based Goldy Brar. While Delhi police have arrested three shooters- Priyavrat Fauji, Kashish and Ankit Sirsa- of Haryana module, their counterparts in Punjab have failed to arrest any shooter so far. Deepak of Haryana module, Mannu and Roopa of Punjab module are still absconding.

As per sources, shooter Ankit Sirsa, who is presently in Punjab Police custody, had also revealed to the cops that Mannu and Roopa were hiding in Punjab.

“Looking at their pattern, it seems the shooters are travelling via rural routes to evade the police. They also stayed in known areas --Mannu belongs to Moga. They are suspected to have moved to Tarn Taran. A police team spotted them on CCTV while trying to map their trail. They moved on June 21, a day after Delhi Police announced that two Haryana module shooters Priyavrat and Kashish were arrested,” another official said.

(Except for the headline and the pictorial description, this story has not been edited by THE DEN staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)