Chandigarh, Apr 10 (PTI) The Punjab government on Friday issued full-page newspaper advertisements announcing cash rewards ranging from Rs 5 lakh to Rs 10 lakh for those providing “credible and reliable” information leading to the arrest of 28 proclaimed offenders, including foreign-based gangster Goldy Brar.
The BJP, however, alleged the Bhagwant Mann government had “completely failed” in stamping out the gangster culture in Punjab, saying the announcement for public awards to help catch gangsters reflected the poor state of the law and order machinery.
Several gangsters, whose names and photos have been released in the “Gangster Free Punjab” advertisement, operate from abroad. Prominent names among those listed include Goldy Brar, Lakhbir Singh alias Landa, Harvinder Singh Sandhu alias Rinda, Rohit Godara, Balwinder Singh Doni, Gaurav Patyal, and Mohammad Yaseen Akhtar, one of the suspects wanted in the killing of NCP leader and former Maharashtra minister Baba Siddique.
The government announced a reward of Rs 10 lakh for fourteen gangsters and Rs 5 lakh for the other fourteen. Information can be shared by calling on the helpline 93946-93946, and the identity of the informers will be kept confidential, the advertisement said.
Among those listed for the Rs 10-lakh reward is Satinderjeet Singh alias Goldy Brar of Muktsar Sahib, Punjab, designated “terrorist” by India in 2024 under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA). A former member of the Lawrence Bishnoi gang, he is now part of the Brar-Rohit Godara-Kala Jatheri gang. Brar went to Canada on a student visa, and is believed to be in the US at present.
Rohit Godara, a resident of Rajasthan, who had fled India and now operates from abroad, also figures in the list.
Another on the list is Canada-based Lakhbir Singh alias Landa, whose name had also figured in the RPG attack at the Punjab Police’s intelligence headquarters in Mohali four years ago.
Harwinder Singh Sandhu alias Rinda is a designated terrorist of the Babbar Khalsa International (BKI), while Gaurav Patyal is a foreign-based kingpin linked to the Davinder Bambiha gang.
A Rs 10-lakh reward has also been announced against Balwinder Singh Doni alias Doni Bal, Prabhdeep Singh alias Prabh Dasuwal, both of whom claimed responsibility for the murder of a village Sarpanch at a wedding in Amritsar in January.
A Rs 5-lakh reward has been announced against Mohammed Yaseen Akhtar, Jobanjeet Singh, Gurdev Singh, Nishan Singh Jourian, Rajesh Kumar and Jaskaran Singh.
The Punjab Police had earlier said Mohammad Yaseen Akhtar (22), a resident of Jalandhar, and one of the suspects in NCP leader Baba Siddique’s murder, was already facing nine heinous criminal cases, including those for murder and attempt to murder.
Punjab Police has established an Overseas Fugitive Tracking and Extradition Cell (OFTEC) to expedite the extradition of foreign-based gangsters.
DGP Gaurav Yadav had earlier said,”Punjab Police will nab the miscreants from any nook, in or outside the country, and make them face the law. We will not leave any space for gangsters. Their entire network will be eliminated. Just as the drug-free Punjab campaign, which has seen substantive progress, we will make the state gangster-free.” Meanwhile, BJP General Secretary Tarun Chugh in a statement said, “It is a shocking reflection of collapse of law and order in Punjab. A government that has to announce cash rewards for citizens to catch gangsters has clearly failed in its primary duty.” Questioning the efficiency of law and order agencies, Chugh said instead of ensuring public safety, the entire system appears busy serving political masters. “Under Bhagwant Mann and Arvind Kejriwal’s leadership, Punjab has become a flourishing state for gangsters and mafias.” Punjab deserves better than “this state of insecurity and helpless governance,” he added. PTI SUN VSD MDO ARB ARB
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