48 hours, but no arrest; lookout notice issued

PK Jaiswar

Tribune News Service

Amritsar, April 1

Unable to arrest the culprits even after 48 hours of cable operator Jaswinder Singh Jassi’s death, the police today released lookout circular for three accused, Sarabjit Singh Raju, local in charge of Fastway cable; Pritpal Singh Lalli, husband of a SAD councillor; and Gurwinder Singh Babbi, a Fastway official.

But, the police have left out Gurdeep Singh, MD, Fastway Cables, considered close to the ruling Shiromani Akali Dal, as no lookout circular was issued against him. The police also did not seem to be making any efforts to arrest him in the case while stating that his role was being verified. The police have formed eight teams, which have been conducting raids at the suspected hideouts of the accused who have been absconding since March 28 when Jaswinder had consumed poison in front of Supreme Court and Punjab and Haryana High Court judges. The judges were here to attend a Telecom Dispute Settlement and Appellate Tribunal (TDSAT) meeting at a hotel.

Deputy Commissioner of Police Harjinder Singh Sandhu released the pictures of the three accused. About Babbi’s role in the case, he said his name was given in the complaint by Balbir Kaur, wife of the deceased. “In her complaint, Balbir Kaur alleged that Babbi along with Raju and Lalli used to harass her husband,” said the DCP.

Raids yield little

A special police team today visited the hotel where Jaswinder attempted suicide and scrutinised its CCTV footage. The police officials said raiding parties had also been sent out of the state after specific inputs to arrest the culprits. The police also raided the houses of the relatives of the accused. The residences of the accused were found locked as their families had gone underground.

Family blames judges

The family members of Jassi today raised a question mark on the “sensitivity of the judges who remained indifferent to his grievances” even as he threatened to end his life in front of them. “Had they given him a patient hearing, he would not have taken the extreme step,” said Balbir Kaur.

“The video-footage of the spot clearly shows that Jassi had approached the TDSAT members, including judges, who were supposed to deal with such cases and address the problems of cable operators. But they did not bother to hear at that time, which left Jassi frustrated. The TDSAT members neither bothered to see the papers he was showing nor they took the threats of suicide by him seriously. The video shows nobody stopped him from taking the extreme step,” she said.

Dr AK Rastogi, the president of All-India Aavishkar Dish Antenna Sangh, New Delhi, also met the deceased’s family. He handed over a cheque for Rs10,000 to the family.

Former Congress MLA Sukhpal Khaira also visited the aggrieved family. Calling it a “murder”, he demanded Rs50 lakh as compensation for them.

Immediate trigger
Narrating what had happened in past one month that forced Jaswinder to commit suicide, his wife Balbir Kaur said accused Pritpal Singh Lalli had launched another cable network in the name of his relative and that too at a very low price. “Due to this, we lost all the cable connections and we virtually had no income,” she lamented while demanding a government job for her son Brahmjot Singh. She also demanded that their cable connections should also be restored.

Accused trio

1. Sarabjit Singh Raju
Belonging to a middle class family, he struck gold in the cable TV network after an unsuccessful stint in running a chit fund company and television repair shop. He befriended the Siti Cable higher-ups and later set up a parallel cable network only to capture the entire cable business in the city in a short span of time. When the SAD-BJP came to power, he joined hands with Gurdeep Singh, Fastway Cable MD. He also ventured into real estate business.

2. Gurwinder Singh Babbi
He is considered Raju's right-hand man. Babbi was a cable operator who managed Raju's business when he was arrested by the police in connection with Amritsar Siti Cable sex scandal in 2003. When Raju came out of jail, Babbi was made a partner in the cable business and later in his real estate business deals.

3. Pritpal Singh Lalli
The husband of a SAD councillor, he was once victim Jaswinder's partner. Raju exploited him to settle scores with Jassi, who was one of the witnesses in the sex scam. Lalli soon took over most of Jaswinder's cable network at the behest of Sarabjit Singh Raju.