Girl injured as armed persons open fire at garment shop in extortion bid in Jandiala Guru

Three unknown persons fired several gunshots outside a garment shop in the Jandiala Guru area in an extortion bid. A girl working at the shop sustained a bullet injury on her leg, while others present there had a narrow escape.

The shop owner, Sunil Kumar (45), a resident of Darshani Bazaar, Jandiala Guru, said he had received several calls from Billa Mangewala, a Dubai-based notorious gangster, who demanded Rs 50 lakh extortion from him.

Billa Mangewala originally hails from Arjanmanga village falling under the Mehta police station here.

In his complaint to the police, Sunil Kumar stated that his brother Shiv Kumar got a WhatsApp call from unknown virtual number. Sunil said as his brother was busy at the shop, he did not respond to the call. He said after sometime, he (Sunil) got another call from a foreign number. He said as Shiv answered the phone call, the accused on the other end said he was Billa Mangewala speaking. He demanded Rs 50 lakh extortion and threatened of dire consequences if they failed to pay money. The accused later sent two threatening voice messages on Shiv’s mobile phone. The complainant said they thought the call was made by some mischievous person and did not bother.

Sunil said on Saturday around 3 pm, three persons came on a bike at his shop of which two persons riding pillion started indiscriminate firing on his business premises. One bullet hit Komal on her thigh who was working at the shop. She was rushed to a hospital from where doctors referred her to Guru Nanak Dev Hospital, Amritsar.

The police recovered three live rounds and six empty shells from the spot. The police said a case was registered in this connection and further probe initiated to identify the shooters and arrest them. Meanwhile, Cabinet Minister Harbhajan Singh ETO met the victim girl at Guru Nanak Dev Hospital and inquired about her health today.