Wife, niece murdered, ASI among 3 booked

Tribune News Service

Advertisement

Gurdaspur, November 26

A double murder rocked the district late last night when the wife of an Assistant Sub Inspector (ASI) and his niece were found dead at Gagowali village falling under Ghuman Kalan police station.

The murders were committed in such a manner that these looked like suicides. However, when the cops scratched the surface, the needle of suspicion started pointing towards ASI Mangal Singh, his second wife Salvinder Kaur alias Sonia and father Wassan Singh.

SSP Swarandeep Singh said, “We are investigating the matter from all possible angles. Initially, it looked like both the women committed suicide, but now it appears that some other persons too are involved. I can neither confirm nor deny the role of the ASI at this point.”

A senior officer, on the condition of anonymity, said chances that the ASI committed the crime were indeed high. “We are working on certain clues. To me it looks like Mangal Singh is involved, but I can arrive at a specific conclusion only after investigation are taken to their logical end,” he said.

At the time of filing of the report, Mangal Singh, his second wife and father were absconding. “Instead of joining the probe, all three are on the run. Obviously, the suspicion shifts on them,” said an investigating officer.

Mangal Singh and his brother Gurpal Singh were joint owners of 5 acres of land. A few years ago, Gurpal died leaving his daughter Gurpreet Kaur, the legal heir after her mother got remarried.

After the ASI solemnised his second marriage, his first wife Rajvir Kaur and Gurpreet Kaur started pestering him to give them the possession of the land. But he refused to part with the land following which enmity developed between them.

An officer said it was being said that in an attempt to end the dispute, the ASI along with his father and second wife conspired to eliminate Rajvir and Gurpreet.

A case under Section 302 IPC (murder) 34 (acts done by several persons in furtherance of a common intention) and 120-B (criminal conspiracy) has been registered against the trio at Ghuman Kalan police station.