The man killed in the blasts in Punjab's Ludhiana court on Thursday morning has been identified as former policeman Gagandeep Singh (30). He was posted as Munshi in Khanna Sadar police station of Ludhiana district. He was dismissed from service in 2019 due to his links with the drug mafia. He also served two years in prison. He was released from jail only on 8 September.
According to police sources, Gagandeep Singh is a resident of GTB Nagar Khanna. Her father's name is Amarjit Singh. Gagandeep Singh was arrested by the STF in August 2019 with 785 grams of heroin. He used to smuggle drugs along with a woman. A criminal case was registered against Gagandeep at the STF police station in Mohali on 11 August 2019. The NIA team has also raided Khanna and got his family recognized. It has been identified by the number of mobile sim and dongle.
NIA got the clue
The National Investigation Agency (NIA) and the National Security Group (NSG) were making tight links during the investigation of the Ludhiana blasts. The court complex was occupied by the teams for the whole night and the investigation was done till morning. National security agencies and local police officers met several times at the site of the incident till late in the night. Security agencies got a lot of inputs from the debris during the investigation. Some broken mobile phones and dongles were found in the debris. The clue to open the case was found here. The dongle was in the name of someone from his area. When the police picked him up and interrogated him, it was revealed about Gagandeep Singh. When the team reached Khanna, Gagandeep was identified there. The tattoo which was being talked about since morning, the family members accepted the same tattoo on Gagandeep's arm.
Link to Babbar Khalsa
Links of Ludhiana blaster Gagandeep Singh with Khalistani organisation Babbar Khalsa International (BKI) are coming to the fore. Intelligence agencies are investigating this. The Babbar Khalsa formed in 1978 is operated by Wadhwa Singh Babbar sitting in Pakistan who fled there in the 90s. Earlier in October-2007, the name of Babbar Khalsa also came in the bomb blast in Shingar Cinema of Ludhiana. 7 people were killed and 32 were injured in that blast.
Searching for Gagandeep Singh's companions
Gagandeep Singh, who was dismissed from the Punjab Police after being arrested in a drug case in the year 2019, was accompanied by some other people at that time. After the death of Gagandeep Singh in a blast while planting a bomb on Thursday, the Punjab Police is now scrutinizing the records of his other accomplices. Punjab Police suspects that any of them may be involved in this blast as well.
Also posted in Machhiwara and Samrala police stations
Gagandeep Singh, a resident of Khanna's Guru Tegh Bahadur Lalheri, was recruited constable in 2011. He was earlier posted in Machhiwara and Samrala police stations. It is learned that he was a quiet person. Gagandeep was the father of a girl child. During his posting as Chief Munshi in Khanna Sadar police station, no one was aware of its activities. The vehicle from which the drug was caught, he had also bought that vehicle after getting a scribe in the police station.
There is a possibility of contact with the accused of Jalalabad bomb blast
The links of the Ludhiana blast are being feared to be linked to the accused in the Jalalabad bomb blast on September 15. The police had arrested Jalalabad blast accused Manjit Singh and Ranjit Singh from Jagraon. During interrogation, the accused had admitted that they were planning to carry out blasts for money. Gagandeep was arrested in a drug smuggling case and he also used to do this work only for money. Real brothers Ranjit Singh and Manjit Singh are also lodged in Ludhiana jail. It is feared that Gagandeep was found in the jail itself and from there he got in touch with the terrorists. It is also learned that he was missing after coming from the jail.
CM's house meeting, DGP will do PC tomorrow
A high-level meeting is currently going on at the residence of Chief Minister Charanjit Singh Channi in Chandigarh regarding the matter. Punjab DGP Siddharth Chattopadhyay held a press conference in Chandigarh on Saturday. It is being said that only about the Ludhiana blasts can any disclosure be made in this.
A panel of three doctors did the postmortem
Earlier, the postmortem of the deceased person was done at the Civil Hospital on Friday. A panel of three doctors conducted the post-mortem in the presence of NIA officials and the District and Sessions Judge. The panel included Dr. Charan Kamal Singh Forensic Expert, Emergency Medical Officer Dr. Vishal.
NIA took soil-debris samples and fingerprints
The National Investigation Agency (NIA), National Security Group (NSG) and state forensic teams took soil samples from the area of the crime scene in the court complex throughout the day on Friday. On behalf of the teams, fingerprints have been taken from the handles of all the surrounding tables, trains.
Not only this, the teams have also taken measurements in all four directions from the blast with inch tape. Information is being collected as to which item has fallen at what distance. According to a lawyer, the exhaust fan installed in the wall fell at a great distance from the spot and the place of its fall has also been measured.