Chandigarh, Jan 12 (IANS) Solving the murder of former sarpanch Jharmal Singh, Punjab Police on Monday claimed to have arrested seven accused, including two assailants, in a major blow to the Prabh Dasuwal gang.

Director General of Police (DGP) Gaurav Yadav said investigations have established gangster Prabh Dasuwal as the mastermind behind the murder, committed due to old enmity, underscoring the pre-planned and targeted nature of the crime.

The DGP, accompanied by Additional Director General of Police (Counter Intelligence) Amit Prasad, Inspector General of Police (Headquarters) Sukhchain Singh Gill and Commissioner of Police Amritsar Gurpreet Singh Bhullar, said the breakthrough reflected the resolve of the police to act decisively against organised crime.

Providing details of the arrests, DGP Yadav said the accused have been identified as Sukhraj Singh, alias Gunga (20), Karamjeet Singh (23), Jobanpreet Singh (19), Harpreet Singh, alias Happy (27), Jobanpreet Singh (20), Kulwinder Singh, alias Kinda (20), and Armandeep Singh.

He said Sukhraj Singh has a criminal history involving theft and Arms Act cases and was also involved in the murder of sarpanch Rajwinder Singh.

The DGP said investigations revealed that gangster Prabh Dasuwal had old enmity with the former sarpanch and had even fired at him earlier, clearly indicating a pre-planned and well-orchestrated conspiracy.

He said the case was taken up on the highest priority, and multiple specialised teams were constituted to investigate the murder.

“The investigation, aided by a combination of technical surveillance and precise human intelligence, enabled police teams to identify both shooters, Sukhraj Singh and Karamjeet Singh, involved in the crime,” DGP Yadav said.

He said sustained interstate coordination, intelligence-led tracking and close cooperation with Central agencies and Chhattisgarh Police led to the arrest of both shooters from Raipur in Chhattisgarh.

“Both accused were deliberately changing locations across multiple states, including Maharashtra, Delhi, Bihar, Punjab and Chhattisgarh, and were using forged Aadhaar cards to conceal their identity and evade police detection,” he said.

The DGP said another police team arrested two more accused, both named Jobanpreet Singh, from Mohali. He said Harpreet Singh was arrested from Valtoha, while Kulwinder Singh and Armandeep Singh were arrested from the Bhikhiwind area of Tarn Taran.

He added investigations revealed these five accused played a crucial role in the conspiracy by providing logistics, shelter, weapons and a motorcycle to the shooters.

–IANS

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