Police get three-day remand of gangster

Tribune News Service

Faridkot, February 12

The police today got three-day remand of Harsimrandeep Singh, alias Sema Behbal, a “category-A” gangster. The police want to question him for his alleged involvement in extortion cases in the district.

The police are suspecting his involvement in extortion cases after they interrogated Vinay Deora.

Around two weeks ago, the police had brought Deora, an undertrial in Bathinda Central Jail, on production warrant here to question him in extortion and loot cases in the district.

Deora, a resident of Kotkapura, was lodged in Bathinda jail for his alleged involvement in many crimes incidents.

The police believe that Deora is a close associate of Harsimrandeep Singh, who was arrested from Dehradun on January 13.

They also believe Deora, working as a conduit for Sema, will identify targets in Kotkapura town, which were threatened by gangsters for extortion.

The name of Deora had surfaced in September last year when the police had arrested two members of the Sema gang — Jagsir Singh of Maur village and Inderdeep Singh of Mal Ke village — on September 15, 2017.

They were arrested when they were collecting extortion money in Kotkapura.

Both of them told the police about Deora, who was ‘helping’ the gang in identifying the potential extortion victims.

Police officers approach gangster’s family

Police officers today met the family of gangster Tirath Dhilwan at Nanansar village.

They interacted with the father, mother and sister of the gangster.

The family members were requested to convince the gangster to surrender before the police. Six criminal cases are registered against Tirath.

To discourage singers and songs which promote and eulogise gangsters, the police have convened a meeting of all singers and song writers in the district on February 13.