Gangsters striking at will abroad too

Forget about gangsters striking at each other in Punjab. They seem to be eliminating rivals at will in foreign countries as well. This came to fore after the audio recording of a phone conversation between fugitive gangster Goldy Brar and DSP Bikramjit Singh Brar of the Anti-Ganster Task Force (AGTF) went public recently.

Goldy Brar dials police officer

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• This came to fore after the audio recording of a phone call between fugitive gangster Goldy Brar and DSP Bikramjit Singh Brar of the Anti-Ganster Task Force (AGTF) went public recently.
• Goldy Brar tells the DSP that he has called him to express “grief” over the beheading of a gangster-turned-police informer Ajay Rana in Russia.
• Another killing (not mentioned in the conversation) by Punjab gangs was that of Sukha Dunike in Canada.

The killing of gangster Ankit Bhadu by the AGTF at Zirakpur in October 2018 and Goldy Brar’s brother Gurlal Brar by a rival outside a night club in Chandigarh in October 2020 form the background of this confrontation between the gangster and the police official. During the phone call, Goldy Brar tells the DSP that he has called him to express “grief” over the beheading of a gangster-turned-police informer Ajay Rana in Russia. Goldy then recounted the killing of gangster-cum-drug smuggler Sunil Yadav, alias Goli, in California last year. He said they were informers of the DSP and had been punished. Other such persons would also be killed, he said.

Another killing (not mentioned in the phone conversation) by Punjab gangs was that of Sukha Dunike in Canada. Gangster Sukhdool Singh Gill (Sukha Duneke), having terror links, was shot dead in Winnipeg, Canada, in September 2023. He was associated with the Davinder Bambiha gang and had fled to Canada in 2017.

Goldy Brar said in the phone call that he had got Ajay Rana beheaded in Russia. He said Rana was supplying information to the authorities. He claimed responsibility for Goli’s murder, alleging that he colluded with the Punjab Police to orchestrate the encounter of Ankit Bhadu, a member of the Bishnoi gang. The DSP was stern in saying that the police did not need informers and that all gangsters, dogs, donkeys or horses were the same and would get the due police treatment.

The phone conversation also referred to a bitter gang rivalry of Lawrence Bishnoi/Goldy Brar gang with the Bambiha/Lucky Patiala gang. More than 20 murders have taken place in and around Punjab since 2016-17.

In the phone call, Goldy Brar also referred to gangster Neeraj Chaska, who was accused of killing Gurlal Brar. Five persons were arrested and charged with murder, including Neeraj Chaska, a member of the Davinder Bambiha gang. The case went to trial, but the key witness, the driver who was present at the scene of the crime, turned hostile.

Due to lack of conclusive evidence and the witness turning hostile, all five accused were acquitted by a Chandigarh court in March 2024. Goldy Brar claims justice was not delivered in the case due to the police failure.

The Punjab Police, meanwhile, had been planning to give a befitting reply to gangsters. IG Dr Sukhchain Singh has already commented in the media to wait for the police action.

All these incidents indicate that the reach and influence of these criminal organisations extends beyond India’s borders.