Jupinderjit Singh
Tribune News Service
Chandigarh, September 3
Even as Punjab enters a new phase of tension over which way the followers of Dera Sacha Sauda move in terms of faith in a sect or religion, the unease over unsolved cases of targeted killings, apparently to create communal tension in the state, continues.
What is more worrying is that the police have not been able to pick any clue in six out of the seven such murders, many of which seem to have been coordinated by the same entity, whether from within or outside India. The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), which was handed some of the cases, too has not been able to make headway.
Over 15 months have passed since some of the murders, which coincided with the disturbance over the series of sacrilege incidents across Punjab. This is the most serious challenge posed to the security agencies since militancy ended in early 1990s.
One of the charges the Congress had levelled against the previous SAD-BJP government was that it was not solving these cases. But in the five months of Congress rule, only one of the seven cases has been cracked, while one more killing — of a Christian priest — has taken place.
Police theories
The police feel that barring the assassination of Mata Chand Kaur of the Namdhari sect, and perhaps the recent murder of pastor Sultan Masih, the other killings have a common thread and were carried out by one group and likely even the same assassins.
An exasperated senior officer involved with the investigations told The Tribune: “Believe us, we have done everything possible to trace the culprits. But the criminals may remain lucky all year, we need to get lucky for just one day.”
Most police officers The Tribune spoke to seem convinced that Sikh terror groups or modules were behind these killings. They even believe that the planning was done by Pakistan’s ISI, which attempted to exploit the tension prevailing at the time between various deras, religious organisations, and Sikhs to cause trouble.
Circumstantial evidence points to a common modus operandi — the same 9mm and 0.32-bore guns were used in most cases; the killers were two in number, and came on a motorcycle and vanished without an electronic trail like the use of mobile phone. The vehicles involved also could not be traced. The police say they have gone through crores of phone calls. The assassins seemed to be professionals.
But there is another view. One officer said: “Some of the killings, especially the assassination of RSS Punjab vice-president RS Gagneja, can have a personal or political angle also. You cannot ignore the fact that these killings and the bomb blast at Maur took place in an election year that saw three parties in the race.” Also, Sikh groups in the past have not hesitated in admitting any act they may have carried out. It would be odd for them to kill someone and not claim the “credit”.
Meanwhile, the mystery continues despite thousands of posters seeking information being put up across the state, and even a reward of Rs 50 lakh and a post of Sub-Inspector in the police being promised for any clue.
Changes in police set-up post killings
Incidents that targeted peace
April 4, 2016
April 26, 2016
June 13, 2016
January 31, 2017
February 25, 2017
July 15, 2017
August 6, 2016
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