Escapee using dual Aadhaar, PAN cards, Punjab informs High Court

Saurabh Malik

Chandigarh, March 1

An escapee is using two different Aadhaar and PAN cards, the police have told the Punjab and Haryana High Court. The submission came less than two months after the police were admonished for failure to arrest the escapee and making efforts for attaching his property.

Rs 2 lakh award for information

It has been found that the escapee is using two different Aadhaar and PAN cards. Raids are being conducted at various places, Justice Harpreet Singh Brar’s Bench was told by the state counsel. A look-out notice had already been issued against the escapee and his immovable property, an agricultural land had also been attached. A reward of Rs 2 lakh was announced for providing any information about the escapee.

It has been found that the escapee is using two different Aadhaar and PAN cards. Continued raids are being conducted at various places, Justice Harpreet Singh Brar’s Bench was told by the state counsel.

Among other things, the counsel also submitted that the salary of all jurisdictional police officers had been attached in compliance with the court orders. The state DGP had also convened a meeting of senior officers and efforts were being made to arrest the accused.

Ferozepur Range DIG had been specially nominated as the nodal officer and Fazilka and Moga SSPs had also been nominated as nodal officers to assist him.

A look-out notice had already been issued against the escapee and his immovable property, an agricultural land, had also been attached. A ‘hue and cry’ notice had also been published in the newspapers and Rs 2 lakh award was announced for providing information. “This court is satisfied that the police authorities are making efforts to arrest the accused,” Justice Brar asserted after taking note of the contentions.

The Bench, on a previous date of hearing, had directed the attachment of salaries of the SHOs in whose police stations the investigation of cases was pending or he was declared a proclaimed offender.

Justice Brar had observed that the HC on the previous date of hearing in November last year had referred to an affidavit filed in August 2021 by the Punjab DGP indicating that Amandeep Singh, alias Aman Skoda, was involved in 31 criminal cases in six districts and had been declared a proclaimed offender in 16 matters.

The court had also granted an additional opportunity to the police authorities with the “earnest hope that effective steps would be taken to vindicate the rule of law and the majesty of justice”.

The Bench had added that the Fazilka SSP had assured the court that the escapee would be brought to book within four weeks. “Neither has the escapee been arrested till now, nor any efforts have been made to follow the drill of Section 83 of the Code of Criminal Procedure (on property attachment)…,” the court had observed subsequently.