Gangster Deepak Tinu’s escape from custody: Year on, CJM yet to forward challan to sessions court
Gangster Tinu, one of the accused in the Moose Wala murder case, had fled from the custody of the crime investigation agency (CIA) unit of the Mansa police on October 1 and rearrested by Delhi police from Ajmer on October 19
More than a year after Punjab Police filed a chargesheet in a case connected to the escape of gangster Deepak alias Tinu, an accused in Sidhu Moose Wala murder case, from Mansa police custody, the challan is yet to be forwarded to the sessions court to start the proceedings.
The court of chief judicial magistrate (CJM) Surabhi Prashar on Saturday adjourned the matter for January 20.
Advocate Sitinderpal Singh Mittal, who is part of sacked CIA in-charge Pritpal Singh’s legal team, who is accused of helping Tinu escape custody, said the hearing was adjourned today as one of the accused had not received some documents related to the case.
Mittal said that the legal process wherein several accused are involved takes time. “Some documents were not supplied to one of the accused by police till the previous hearing, so the matter was adjourned. The matter was again adjourned today for the same reason,” he said.
As the sections imposed on the accused can be tried by the sessions court exclusively, the lower court needs to commit the case. After the committal, the case will be transferred to the sessions court to start proceedings.
Gangster Tinu, one of the accused in the Moose Wala murder case, had fled from the custody of the crime investigation agency (CIA) unit of the Mansa police on October 1. The Punjab Police arrested and sacked unit in-charge SI Pritpal Singh, who was also a member of the SIT probing the singer’s murder case. Police claimed Pritpal was part of the conspiracy hatched for Tinu’s escape. Tinu was rearrested by the Delhi Police along with weapons from Ajmer in Rajasthan on October 19. Later, Punjab Police brought him on transit remand from Delhi.
In December 2022, Mansa police had filed a chargesheet against Pritpal Singh, Deepak Tinu, Jatinder Kaur Jyoti, Kuldeep Singh, alias Kohli, Rajvir Kajama, Rajinder Singh Gora, Bittu Singh, Sarabjot Singh, Chirag and Sunil Lohia under sections 222, 224, 225A, 120B, 212 and 216 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) and Section 25 of the Arms Act.
The chargesheet claimed that Pritpal had taken Tinu to his official residence in the district administration’s housing complex inside Mansa city in a private car. “Tinu had escaped from his residence with the help of the other accused,” it added.
On July 4, the Punjab Police had brought Tinu on transit remand from the Tihar jail in the Moose Wala murder case. Later, he was brought on production warrants twice each in old cases registered in connection with criminal incidents at Bohrawala and Bahadurpur. On September 27, Tinu was again brought on production warrants from Goindwal Sahib Jail in a murder case registered at Sardulgarh police station. However, he fled from custody after four days. SIT said in the chargesheet that Tinu was brought on remand and kept at the CIA police station on purpose by Pritpal.
Tinu was among the 24 accused chargesheeted in the Moose Wala murder case.
According to the chargesheet, Tinu is an aide of gangsters Lawrence Bishnoi and Jaggu Bhagwanpuria. Tinu is facing 35 criminal cases, including that of murder, in Punjab, Haryana, Chandigarh, Rajasthan and Delhi. Tinu was instrumental in connecting Bishnoi with gangster Goldy Brar, believed to be in Canada at that time, through mobile phones for planning and executing Moose Wala’s murder,” police said in the chargesheet.
