14 anti-drug panel members booked for thrashing 22-yr-old to death in Bathinda
The president of the committee, Nardev Singh, and member Gurpreet Singh were later arrested. Following the preliminary interrogation of the accused, the body of the deceased was recovered from Lasara drain
Police have booked 14 members of an anti-drug committee of Ghuman Kalan in Bathinda district for allegedly abducting and killing a 22-year-old man on the suspicion that he was involved in selling drugs.
The body of the deceased, identified as Daljinder Singh of Mehraj village in Rampura Phul, Bathinda, was found dumped near a drain, police officials said on Sunday.
The president of the committee, Nardev Singh, and member Gurpreet Singh were later arrested. Following the preliminary interrogation of the accused, the body of the deceased was recovered from Lasara drain.
Meanwhile, 12 other accused — Happy Singh, Kulvir Singh, Arshdeep Singh, Karanveer Singh, Rinku, Kishori, Balvir Singh, Preet Singh, Baggar, Jaila Singh, Satnam Singh and Jagmeet Singh — are still absconding.
Sharing details, Bathinda senior superintendent of police (SSP) Gulneet Khurana said the deceased’s wife Gurpreet Kaur had filed a report after her husband went missing.
“The family suspected Dajinder was abducted by some unidentified persons. Following this, a special team was constituted to trace the case. During the investigation, it was found that 14 members of an anti-drug committee of Ghuman Kalan village and 10 unidentified persons abducted Daljider on October 10. They took him to Nardev’s fields and beat him with iron rods and batons. Daljinder died when They dumped the body in Lasar drain along with his bike,” the SSP added.
He revealed that Daljinder had been named as an accused in a Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act case, adding, “The accused suspected that Daljinder was involved in the supply of drugs in their village. Following this they had abducted him.”
“Nardev Singh and Gurpreet Singh were arrested by a police team and following their interrogation, the body of the deceased was fished out of the drain. We have got a three-day police remand of both the accused and further investigation is underway,” the SSP said.
A case was registered under sections 302 (murder), 364 (kidnapping), 201 (causing disappearance of evidence), 148 and 149 (both rioting) of the Indian Penal Code at the Rampura City police station.
