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Chandigarh, March 14 (IANS) In a major action by the Punjab Police, Harpreet Singh, one of the accused arrested for the kidnapping of a seven-year-old boy, sustained bullet injuries while attempting to escape police custody during a follow-up operation to recover illegal weapons, said Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) Gagan Ajit Singh on Friday.
The development came a day after the police rescued the boy within 24 hours of his abduction and arrested two accused -- Harpreet Singh (24) of Bathan village of Amargarh and Ravi Bhinder (21) of Jagowal village in Amargarh.
Their accomplice identified as Jaspreet Singh was neutralized in retaliatory action after he attempted to flee in a Fortuner SUV and opened fire on the police at Mandour village on Nabha Road. In recognition of the swift action, Director General of Police Gaurav Yadav announced a Rs 10 lakh cash reward and promotions for the police personnel involved in the operation.
Pertinently, the operation was conducted jointly by the police teams of three districts -- Khanna, Malerkotla and Patiala -- under the overall supervision of DIG Patiala Range Mandeep Singh Sidhu.
Senior Superintendent of Police Gagan Ajit said that to establish the backward and forward linkages, special teams were formed under the supervision of Superintendent of Police (Investigation) Vaibhav Sehgal led by CIA in-charge Harjinder Singh and SHO Manjot Singh.
During follow-up investigations, SHO Amargarh received information that the accused Harpreet Singh and Ravi Bhinder were suspected to be in possession of illegal weapons, he said, adding that police teams took the accused Harpreet Singh to recover these weapons near Salar village.
Upon reaching the location, accused Harpreet attempted to flee by opening fire at the police party using the pistol retrieved from the spot, said the Senior Superintendent of Police.
The police retaliated in self-defence resulting in injuring Harpreet on his leg, he said.
The latter was taken to the Civil Hospital Malerkotla for treatment.
Senior Superintendent of Police Gagan Ajit said that police teams have recovered a .32 caliber pistol along with two cartridges from the spot. Further investigations are on, he added.
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