Hardeep Deepa’s murder : Won’t cremate body till all suspects held, says sister
Aparna Banerji
Jalandhar, September 25
Even six days after the brutal murder of Hardeep Singh, alias Deepa, family members of the 30-year-old bodybuilder refused to cremate the body, demanding the arrest of all suspects in the case.
Four persons, including the kingpin, have been arrested. The family, however, said they would perform the last rites only after the arrest of all 10 persons named in the case.
Deepa’s family also denied the drug charges levelled against him by the police yesterday. However, the police today claimed that Deepa was a drug user. He also went to Boota Pind on September 19 to consume drugs.
Hardeep, alias Deepa, was brutally murdered by Harpreet, alias Happy, and his aides on September 19. The suspects, who dropped his body outside his house at Dhilwan village, knocked at his home and informed his parents that they had murdered their son. As many as 10 persons were named in the case. Of this, four suspects have been arrested.
While kingpin Harpreet Singh, alias Happy, his aides Navjit Singh, alias Gora, Amruddin, alias Amru, and Manav Mehta, alias Manav, were arrested, six persons – Kulwinder Kaur (Harpreet Happy’s mother), Malkit Singh, alias Happy, Charanjit Kaur, alias Raj, Sharan, alias Kela, Rohit Kumar, alias Ronny, and Sukhwinder Singh, alias Shubham, – are still at large.
Notably, in the formal version and release issued regarding the case yesterday, the Kapurthala police had stated that on the night of the murder, Hardeep Singh Deepa visited Jeona, a resident of Boota village on his motorcycle, and was going out of his house carrying drugs towards the Subhanpur side. He was chased near fields and then brutally murdered before being left outside his house by Harpeet, alias Happy, and his aides.
Harpreet Kaur, sister of Hardeep Singh Deepa, said, “My brother was a bodybuilder and he didn’t take drugs. Charges framed against him dilute the seriousness of the case. We will not cremate the body until Harpreet Happy’s mother Kulwinder Kaur and other remaining suspects named in the case are arrested.”
Ramaninder Singh, SP (Investigation), Kapurthala, said: “Hardeep Singh Deepa was a drug user. It surfaced during investigation that he went to Boota village to consume chitta. He also consumed it by the time he came out. He might have also carried some drugs along with him while he was leaving the place. One of the suspects, Malkit Singh, is also a drug user. So far, we don’t have reason to believe that key suspect Happy was a drug user.”
He said the police were on the lookout for the remaining suspects. Notably, Harpreet Singh Happy had 11 previous cases registered against him, while two previous cases registered against Hardeep Singh Deepa.
The SP said Deepa was not a kabaddi player. His photo clicked in a gym being circulated on the social media was also several years old.
