Suicide pact: Two cops suspended

Balwant Garg

Tribune News Service

Faridkot, September 25

Three days after four members of a Dalit family in Faridkot committed suicide by jumping into a canal, the police today ordered the suspension of SHO, police station, Faridkot, and an investigation officer.

Preliminary investigation by the police found that these police officials — Gurdeep Singh and Harphool Singh — allegedly “failed” to give timely help to the victims on August 21 when they had approached the police time and again to seek action against their politically connected neighbour.

Deputy Commissioner Faridkot also gave Rs 10 lakh to the surviving members of the family from the Chief Minister’s Relief Fund. The bodies of all four — Jagtar Singh, his wife Salwinder Kaur, daughters Parveen Kaur and Harbhajan Kaur — were cremated in the evening today in the presence of Deputy Commissioner and SSP Faridkot.

Fearing political backlash of this suicide pact in which the name of a local senior Akali leader figures prominently, the Akali leadership of the area, district administration and police were under pressure to pacify the two surviving daughters and a son in the victim family.

Some relatives of the deceased are demanding that the Akali leader be named as accused in this abetment of suicide case.

DS Mann, SSP Faridkot, said Salwinder, wife of Jagtar Singh, had been assaulted by members of Lal Singh’s family, who stayed in the neighbourhood, on August 21.

But these negligent police officials did not provide timely help to the victims despite repeated phone calls.

Sources said that as the Akali leader was backing the accused, the police did not pay attention to the calls. On September 22, four family members ended their lives.

After the suicides, the police registered an abetment of suicide case against six members of Lal Singh’s family.

A special investigation team is investigating the role of the Akali leader, said SSP Faridkot.