Suspect in double murder case nabbed from Haridwar in 48 hrs

Tribune News Service

Nikhil Bhardwaj

Ludhiana, February 28

The Ludhiana police have successfully traced and apprehended the suspect in a gruesome double murder that occurred on the intervening night of February 25 and 26 at Jyoti Dairy in Bulara village here.

DGP’s commendation Disc given to 12 cops

On the recommendation of CP Mandeep Singh Sidhu, Punjab DGP Gaurav Yadav granted DGP Commendation Disc to 12 officers involved in apprehending the suspect. Further, a cash reward of Rs 1 lakh each has been granted to both teams — CIA and police station, Sahnewal.

The police said the suspect, a worker at the dairy, demanded Rs 50,000 from the dairy owner and when he refused, the former slit his throat. Later, when another worker intervened, he was also hacked to death.

Within 48 hours of the incident, police teams were able to trace Girdhari Lal, a worker at the dairy where the incident occurred, who had fled with all his belongings after slitting the throats of Jot Ram (77), the owner, and Bhagwant Singh (65), a worker, at the dairy. The police also seized a blood-soaked long knife, which was used in committing the crime.

Commissioner of Police (CP) Mandeep Singh Sidhu, JCP RS Brar, ADCP Suhail Qassim Mir and ACP Vaibhav Sehgal addressed a press conference in this regard.

Sidhu said despite facing several challenges in tracing the suspect, including his past criminal credentials and absence of a mobile phone, the Ludhiana police deployed various teams for the purpose. They made use of CCTV footage from the dairy and other cameras along the route to track Girdhari’s movements.

The CP added that it was found that the suspect had took an auto-rickshaw near the Gill railway station and then boarded a bus at Sherpur Chowk, which was heading towards Ambala. The police teams worked with Haryana Roadways to track the bus and found that Girdhari had deboarded at the Ambala bus stand. Further probe revealed that he had boarded another bus going towards Jamna Nagar and had deboarded at Jagadhri.

He revealed that despite non-functional CCTV cameras at the bus stand, the police teams continued their efforts and inquired with local residents, eventually finding a shopkeeper who had seen Girdhari roaming around the railway station. With the help of the stationmaster and local passengers, the police were able to track Girdhari to Haridwar, Uttarakhand, where he was finally apprehended while sitting on a Ganga ghat.

The suspect also have a criminal past as he is already facing two cases — the recovery of 46 kg of opium in 1996 by the Dehlon police and 35 kg of opium by the Sangrur railway police in 2014.

“He will face justice for the barbaric heinous crime, the investigation agency would make sure that the investigation was done in an expedited manner and our condolences go out to the families of the victims,” the top cop said.

“The Ludhiana police have shown dedication and perseverance in tracking down the suspect within 48 hours, despite facing multiple challenges. The team, including Inspector Sukhdev Brar, SHO Sahnewal; ASI Balwinder Singh; and senior constable Amandeep Singh, which followed and finally apprehended the suspect, will be suitably rewarded,” Sidhu said.

On the recommendation of CP Mandeep Singh Sidhu, Punjab DGP Gaurav Yadav granted DGP’s Commendation Disc to 12 officers involved in apprehending the suspect. Further, a cash reward of Rs 1 lakh each has been granted to both teams — CIA and police station, Sahnewal. The DGP Disc has been granted to JCP RS Brar, DCP (Investigation) Harmeet Singh Hundal, ADCP 2 Suhail Qasim Mir, ACP (South) Vaibhav Sehgal, CIA in-charge Inspector Kulwant Singh, ASI Nirbhai Singh, ASI Jasbir Singh, HC Kulwinder Singh, constable Vansnoor, Inspector Sukhdev Singh Brar, ASI Balwinder Singh and SC Amandeep Singh.

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