Bathinda killings’ FIR points to 2 masked attackers with gun, axe
The cantonment police have registered a case under the Indian Penal Code Section 302 (murder) and the Arms Act,according to the FIR seen by HT.
Bhatinda: Two unidentified people were booked for murder after four soldiers were killed at the barracks near an officers’ mess in the Bathinda military station in Punjab on Wednesday, the FIR in the case said, adding that one of them was carrying an automatic weapon and another an axe.
According to the FIR registered on the complaint of Major Ashutosh Shukla, an INSAS (Indian Small Arms System) rifle and a magazine with 28 cartridges that went missing from an army unit three days ago were likely used by the suspects in the attack. The rifle was found later in the day, officials aware of the matter said.
“An unarmed jawan Desai Mohan saw two unidentified persons in kurta-pyjama with their faces covered, coming out of the barracks after the firing. One of them was carrying an INSAS rifle and the other an axe,” according to the FIR based on the complaint of Major Shukla, whose 80 Medium Regiment was guarding the area around the officers’ mess.
After the firing incident, the army deployed quick reaction teams and cordoned off the area. The cantonment police have registered a case under the Indian Penal Code Section 302 (murder) and the Arms Act,according to the FIR seen by HT.
“In their police statement, eyewitnesses say the suspects ran to a forest area and disappeared under dark. A massive combing operation did not yield any result,” said an official quoting the FIR. No one was apprehended till the time this report was filed on Wednesday night.
The FIR said that Major Shukla and other personnel rushed to the spot after hearing the gunshots where they found the victims Sagar Banne (25), Kamalesh R (24), Yogeshkumar J (24) and Santosh M Nagaral (25) lying in a pool of blood.
During the army’sinvestigation, it was found that the shells belonging to an INSAS rifle issued to Lance Naik Bhupdi Hariz on March 31, 2023, that went “missing” on April 9, 2023 were found next to the bodies, according to the FIR.
According to the SHO of Bathinda cantonment police station Gurdeep Singh, a complaint of a missing rifle and ammunition from the military station was filed on Tuesday evening but no FIR was registered “as the unit investigated the matter”.
“None of the army personnel in the area opened fire in retaliation as they were performing duty sans arms as per the standing orders. This fact was duly recorded in the FIR,” said a police functionary.
