Dera dy’s murder: Cops suspect contract killing

Tribune News Service

Faridkot, November 11

Four days after the murder of deputy chief of Harka Das Dera in Faridkot district, followers of the dera are sticking to their stand of not cremating the body of Baba Dayal Das till the culprits are arrested. Harka Das dera at Kot Sukhia village has many branches across the state and the dera has agriculture land at different places.

On November 7 evening, two unidentified assailants entered the dera at Kot Sukhia village and killed 55-year-old Baba Dayal Das, the deputy chief of the dera. Baba Dayal Das was the officiating incharge of the dera for the past many months due to the poor health of dera head Baba Hari Das. As he was seen as imminent successor of the dera head, his murder has given indication of struggle within the dera for the head post.

On the complaint of a dera disciple, Gagan Das, the police have registered a murder case against Baba Jarnail Das, head of the dera’s branch at Kapurewala village in Moga, but the police are hesitant to lay hand on him in the absence of confirmed evidence.

Believing it be a contract killing, the police are looking for the assailants. “We have constituted five teams in search of the assailants as one of them has been identified on the basis of a CCTV footage,” said a police officer.

“The way the dera deputy chief has been killed, it gives strong suggestions of it being the handiwork of professional killers and one of the assailants identified in the CCTV footage bear close resemblance to such killer,” he said. The police have rounded up some suspects.