Faridkot: Man dies in high-speed chase by liquor contractors
Faridkot, June 22
The police have booked two liquor contractors on the murder charge after a smuggling suspect whom they they were chasing died when their vehicle hit his scooter.
While accused contractors Balwinder Singh, alias Captain, and Darshan Kumar alleged that the police had booked them for murder without verifying the facts, the victim’s family members claimed that the deceased’s scooter was hit by the speeding vehicle of the accused. They alleged that the liquor contractors were chasing the deceased, Balkaran Singh, at a breakneck speed in their vehicle. Family members said they rammed their vehicle into the scooter with the intention of killing him.
Denying the allegations that Balkaran indulged in liquor smuggling, Chamkaur Singh, the deceased’s brother, said the liquor contractors took law into their own hands.
Contractors of the area said while the liquor smuggling was a big challenge to their business, the police and excise officials were not forthcoming in helping them in controlling the smuggling. “We are forced to raid and chase smugglers to check their activities,” they claimed.
In the latest incident at Bajakhana, some officials of the Excise Department were also accompanying the liquor contractors in their vehicle, claimed the contractors. As the suspect was driving his scooter at a high speed to escape the chasing contractors, he lost control and his head struck the road, causing a fatal head injury, they claimed.
The police said the liquor contractors and their men had no authority to chase anyone. “If they have any concerns over liquor smuggling, then they can inform the police and officials of the Excise Department,” said the police.
