Assailants open fire at Mohali SHO’s bulletproof car in Rupnagar
In 2015, Gabbar was run over by a car driven by members of Rupnagar’s Jassi gang while he was deputed as the CIA in-charge in Rupnagar. His both legs were injured in the attack, following which police had nabbed five accused
In a brazen attack that left Mohali police stunned, unidentified assailants fired gunshots at the car of Mataur station house officer inspector Gabbar Singh near Dhianpura village flyover on the Kurali-Morinda bypass in Rupnagar on Thursday night.
The inspector, who had received threats last year too, was in his private bulletproof Mahindra Scorpio car, with his gunman, when he was fired upon around 11 pm.
The inspector was headed to Kurali, sitting on the passenger side, while his gunman was driving.
“The moment we were about to take the flyover, someone fired from the left side. But the shots could not pierce the vehicle, as it is bulletproof. Suspecting a trap, we sped away and could not see the shooters, as it was dark,” SHO said in his complaint.
After being alerted, Rupnagar police, including senior police officers, reached the spot. A forensic team also arrived to collect evidence. Teams of Mohali police are also investigating the attack.
Stating that he didn’t have any personal enmity with anyone, the inspector said someone seemed to be holding a grudge against him due to official duties. “I never had any personal dispute with anyone, but since we have to maintain law and order, we end up earning enemies while performing duty. Last year, we had registered a case at the Mataur police station after I received serious threats, following which the police department provided me two gunmen and I got myself a bulletproof vehicle,” Singh said.
Notably, Singh, a national-level hockey player, also served as the CIA in-charge in Rupnagar.
Police struggling to identify shooting spot
Investigators, meanwhile, are struggling to identify the possible spot from where the bullets were shot at the inspector, who also did not see any vehicle around him at the time of the firing.
The car was targeted at the beginning of the flyover. “There is a service road under the flyover that is surrounded by fields. The field on the left side of the road is around 12 feet below the service lane. Thus, it’s impossible that someone would have shot from the field. There is another possibility that the shooter was present near the concrete railing at the beginning of the flyover. But in that case, the inspector and his gunman would have seen him while crossing. We are also yet to ascertain if the bullet was fired from a long or close range,” an investigator said.
Another senior officer ridiculed the possibility of involvement of gangsters.
“Gangsters tend to take responsibility on social media and would have issued another warning. Gangsters also conduct recces and thus would have known that the inspector drives a bulletproof car. There is a possibility that someone saw him in the area and fired at him,” a cop said.
There are no CCTV cameras at the spot.
In 2015, Gabbar was run over by a car driven by members of Rupnagar’s Jassi gang while he was deputed as the CIA in-charge in Rupnagar. His both legs were injured in the attack, following which police had nabbed five accused.
In the present case, Bhagwantpura police in Rupnagar have booked unidentified accused under Section 307 (attempt to murder) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC), besides relevant sections of the Arms Act.
