Fearing for life, accused’s family goes into hiding

Surinder Bhardwaj

Fatehgarh Sahib, June 24

Despite tight security outside Bhagrana village residence of Maninder Singh, one of the accused in the Nabha jail murder case of Dera follower Mohinderpal Bittu, his family on Monday left the village without informing anybody.

No villager is ready to talk to the media about their whereabouts, but some youths alleged that the family went into hiding under police pressure, which the SSP denied.

Gurbinder Singh, sarpanch of Bhagrana village, told The Tribune that mother of the accused Gulzar Kaur, elder brother Sandeep Singh and some other family members had gone to see their relatives on Sunday evening, while his father Harbans Singh and younger brother Sandeep Singh locked the house and left on Monday afternoon. He expected them to be back soon as their cattle were still here. The sarpanch, however, confirmed that a police party was still deployed there.

Meanwhile, SSP Amneet Kondal expressed ignorance about the whereabouts of the family. She said the family might have left in order to avoid the media and other Sikh organisations.

The SSP said the family was confused as a large number of reporters, political leaders and members of other organisations had been visiting them. “They had been refusing to talk to anyone, but they were being forced to do so.”

Answering a query on how the family fled even when security personnel were present there. She said the police had not been deployed there to interfere in their day-to-day life, but just for their security.