1992 fake police encounter: CBI court sentences 3 former Punjab Police cops to life imprisonment
PTC Web Desk: In a significant development in a long-standing case of a fake police encounter, a CBI (Central Bureau of Investigation) court has pronounced a verdict 31 years after a 1992 incident, in which three former police officers were found guilty of fabricating encounters.
Those convicted are former Inspector Dharam Singh, former ASI Surinder Singh, and former DSP Gurdev Singh. They have been sentenced to life imprisonment and fined Rs lakh each.
This case, which has been ongoing for several decades, involved the tragic death of Harjeet Singh, whose father had filed a petition in the Punjab and Haryana High Court, stating that his son was falsely implicated and killed by the police in a bus stand incident on April 29, 1992. Subsequently, two other youths, Jaswinder Singh Jassa and Lakhwinder Singh Lakha, were also implicated and killed in fabricated encounters.
In the case, warrants were first issued for the officers, and an inquiry was initiated by a Sessions Judge in Chandigarh. Later, in 1997, the case was handed over to the CBI, and charges were filed against nine police officers in 2000. However, the case dragged on for many years before a verdict was finally reached.
Notably, during the course of the trial, several witnesses passed away, with 27 out of 58 witnesses having already died.
- With inputs from our correspondent
