Carjacking suspect’s encounter: Eyebrows raised at police theory

PK Jaiswar

Tribune News Service

Amritsar, December 19

Even as a magisterial probe was underway into the encounter in which a Hoshiapur resident identified as Inderjit Singh, a carjacking suspect, was shot dead by local police near Jandiala Guru toll plaza here on December 8, fingers are being raised over the police theory over the situation that led to firing resulting in the killing of the victim.

According to the Amritsar police, Inderjit had snatched an SUV from a doctor in Ambala on the same day. The CIA staff of city police was holding a naka at Jandiala Guru toll plaza following snatching of another car from a DSP rank officer in the Putlighar area here when they received the information from Ambala police that a person had snatched an SUV from there and was coming to Amritsar via Ludhiana and Jalandhar.

The local police had claimed that the suspect was signalled to stop, but he hit barricades and tried to run over the police party at the checkpoint installed near the toll plaza that fell under the jurisdiction of Amritsar rural police. Therefore, they opened fire in self-defence that led to his death.

Nevertheless, the FIR registered with the Ambala police had raised several questions. According to complainant in the case, the vehicle was snatched from there at around 4.45 pm while the police received the information at 8 pm.

Interestingly, in the FIR registered with the Jandiala police the time of occurrence of the encounter was 6.30 pm which implies that Inderjit reached Amritsar from Ambala in less than two hours.

“This is practically impossible. Further, there was not any bullet entry point in the SUV,” said Sarabjit Singh, principal investigator, Punjab Human Rights Organisations (PHRO), an NGO, while adding that they had carried investigations in the case and a report would be put forth before appropriate authorities for further necessary action against the cops. We have the statements of several eyewitnesses in the incident also, he added.

There are glaring gaps in the FIR and the action taken by the CIA staff of city police, who had shot him dead. In the FIR they claimed that before admission to hospital he had told his name as Inderjit Singh of Hoshiarpur. However, he was admitted as an ‘unknown’ person in Guru Nanak Dev Hospital. Further, if he was critically injured, he should be admitted in the nearby hospital rather than taking to GNDH which was far from the spot.

Sub-Divisional Magistrate Vikas Hira said that he could not comment on the probe being carried out in the case. He said the family members would record their statements next week after bhog ceremony of the deceased.