Retd Punjab cop gets 10-yr RI for fake encounter

Tribune News Service

Mohali, September 23

A special CBI court today sentenced a retired Sub-Inspector of the Punjab Police to 10-year rigorous imprisonment in a 29-year-old case at Sathiala village of Beas in Amritsar district.

Special CBI Judge Harinder Kaur Sidhu sentenced Amrik Singh (then ASI) to RI for kidnapping, illegal confinement and killing of Gurvinder Singh in a fake encounter case. The court also slapped a fine of Rs 20,000 on him in default of which he would have to undergo one-year of extended imprisonment.

The second accused, Inspector Wassan Singh, died during the trial. Wassan was then posted as Station House Officer of the Beas police station. Amrik, who broke down in the court today, was sent to the Patiala jail. The FIR was registered in 1997 following the Supreme Court directions. The agency had filed a chargesheet against Wassan and Amrik for killing Gurvinder Singh, a resident of Pheruman village in Amritsar.

On July 21, 1992, a police team from Beas raided Gurvinder’s house and detained his father Chanan Singh. After questioning Chanan, his son was picked up from the house of his uncle in Jalandhar. Later, Chanan was released, but the next day, Gurvinder was killed in an encounter. In 1997, the case was handed over to the CBI and in 2000, charges were framed against both the cops for kidnapping, illegal confinement and murder. The police claimed Gurvinder, a 20-year-old college student, was involved in many murder, extortion and kidnapping cases, but during the trial, the allegations turned out to be false and the encounter, too, turned out to be fake.

Killed student

• On July 21, 1992, the police raided the house of Gurvinder Singh, a student, in Pheruman village, Amritsar
• They arrested him and his father Chanan Singh, who was later relased
• But, they killed Gurvinder, alleging he was involved in many murder, extortion and kidnapping cases, which later proved false