SC Commission summons Patiala SP, DSP over alleged police inaction in separate cases

The Punjab State Scheduled Castes Commission has summoned senior police officers in Patiala in two separate cases involving alleged police inaction on complaints filed by Scheduled Caste members.

Sharing details, commission chairman Jasvir Singh Garhi said the Superintendent of Police and DSP City-1, Patiala, had been asked to appear before the commission after prima facie lapses were found in handling the cases.

In the first case, Garhi said Ram Prashad (70), a resident of Balbera village in Patiala district, had approached the commission alleging police apathy following the suspicious death of his son Gurtej Singh. Gurtej, who worked at a shop, had left home for work on December 13, 2025. Around 11 am, the family received a phone call informing them of his death.

“The police shifted the body to the mortuary, but the Civil Lines police station ignored the family’s complaint and initiated proceedings under Section 174 of the CrPC, asking them to conduct the last rites,” Garhi said.

He added that when the family was eventually allowed to see the body, it was found to be badly burnt, raising serious questions about the circumstances surrounding the death.

Garhi said that despite clear directions issued by the Commission, the Patiala police had failed to take any concrete action. Consequently, DSP City-1, Patiala, Satnam Singh has been directed to appear before the Commission on January 14, 2026, to explain the lapse.

In another case, Garhi said no action had been taken on a complaint filed by Sukhdeep Kaur, wife of Sukhwinder Singh and a resident of Dhammu Majra village in Patiala, against Inspector Baljit Singh, despite repeated instructions from the commission.

In this matter, SP Swaranjit Kaur of the Punjab Bureau of Investigation, Patiala, has also been summoned to appear before the commission on January 14, 2026.