Akali Dal sarpanch's husband shot dead by villager, personal enmity suspected

The husband of a Shiromani Akali Dal sarpanch was shot dead in Punjab's Tarn Taran district. The incident took place in Gaggo Buha village on Friday night.

The victim has been identified as Navdeep Singh. He was the husband of SAD sarpanch Kulwinder Kaur. Police said Navdeep had a dispute with Sonu Kanda, who runs a jewellery shop in the village, and suspect personal enmity was behind the shooting.

According to Navdeep’s relatives, he had stopped near a medicine shop close to Kanda’s jewellery shop along with his uncle and cousin on Friday night. They claimed Navdeep noticed several vehicles parked outside the jewellery shop and was calling a panchayat member to inform him about the matter when Kanda allegedly shot him with a .315-bore rifle.

Navdeep was seriously injured in the shooting and was taken to a hospital in Amritsar, where he died during treatment.

His relatives, including Paramjit Singh Pamma, and SAD constituency in-charge Kanchanpreet Kaur, alleged that Kanda was involved in selling drugs under the cover of his jewellery business. They claimed villagers had previously complained about unidentified people and vehicles gathering outside the shop.

According to the relatives, Navdeep had informed the police about the suspected drug activity and alleged that information about his complaint was leaked to Kanda, leading to the enmity. These allegations have not been independently established and police have not confirmed any link between the suspected drug activity and the murder.

The relatives also questioned the police response, claiming that officers did not reach the spot during the night and that some police personnel arrived at the Amritsar hospital only around 11 am the following day.

DSP Sukhbir Singh said a case has been registered against Sonu Kanda, Nirmal Singh and Akashdeep, along with three unidentified persons. All the accused are currently absconding, and police said efforts are underway to arrest them.

The incident comes days after an Assistant Sub-Inspector (ASI), 50-year-old Harjeet Singh, was shot dead on duty in Amritsar.

The policeman was shot three times on a road at around 2:30 am.

One of the accused in the murder of the ASI was gunned down in a police encounter in Punjab’s Amritsar on September 19, while another suspect escaped under the cover of darkness.

Deepak Singh, the man who was killed in the encounter, was allegedly linked to Pakistan-based terrorist Shahzad Bhatti and his terror module.

Amritsar Commissioner of Police Harmanbir Singh Gill said police had actively been working on Harjeet Singh's murder case and had set up checkpoints across the city as a result.

After receiving credible information, Deepak encountered police personnel at a checkpoint.

He was subsequently signalled to stop. Gill said the accused, however, opened fire at the police team, firing four rounds.

The police fired six rounds in self-defence, hitting him once. He was immediately taken to a hospital, where doctors declared him brought dead, Gill said.