PILIBHIT/GURDASPUR: Photographs of Gurvinder Singh, Jasanpreet Singh, and Varinder Singh – alleged operatives of the Khalistan Zindabad Force (KZF) gunned down in UP on Monday – released by Punjab police, along with the images of their bodies after the encounter in Pilibhit, have raised questions about the sequence of events. The three men were killed in a joint operation by Punjab and Uttar Pradesh police on Monday morning.
The official file photos of the accused show them with similar white backgrounds in the exact outfits they wore during the encounter, adding to their families’ doubts about the encounter and their involvement with KZF. A police officer told TOI that the men were “intercepted while attempting to cross the Nepal border on a stolen bike”.
Pilibhit SP Avinash Pandey dismissed concerns about the photos. “Information about the three was shared by Punjab police with us at around 4.30am on Monday. Thereafter, a joint operation was enforced. There is nothing to doubt about the police action in reference to their outfits.” By 5am, some 30 minutes after that, the encounter was underway. At about 6 am, all three were dead.
In Gurdaspur (Punjab), families and communities of the three men are struggling to accept the police’s version of events. Residents of Nikki Sahoor and Agwan villages, as well as Kalanaur town, all in Gurdaspur district, gathered in large numbers, expressing disbelief over the accusations against the men, who were known locally as labourers and drivers.
Sarabjit Kaur, mother of Gurvinder, 25, said her son had been missing for six days. “He left for Batala to find work, and we searched everywhere, even in Amritsar. Today, the police came to our home and informed us that he was killed in an encounter,” she said. Gurvinder, she added, had been friends with the other two accused, who often visited their home.
Gurvinder’s father, Gurdev Singh, a daily wager, said, “My son was only trying to find good work. I don’t understand how he could be involved in such a thing.” Gurvinder had previously been implicated in a case involving the drowning of another boy, with a court hearing scheduled for next month.
The home of Varinder, 23, in Agwan village, was locked. A neighbour, speaking anonymously, described him as a truck driver and the son of an ex-serviceman. “It’s hard to believe this. He was just an ordinary young man,” the neighbour added.
Some distance away in Nikki Sahoor, Gurpreet Kaur, wife of Jasanpreet, 18, said he left home last Tuesday for a driving job. “We’ve only been married three months. I couldn’t reach him after he left. Today, I heard this tragic news,” she said. Gurpreet called the accusations “fabricated, utter lies” and demanded justice. Jasanpreet’s mother, Paramjit Kaur, added, “He worked as a labourer and was uneducated. I don’t believe he could be involved in such activities. I want justice for my son, and a free and fair investigation.”
At a press conference in Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh DGP Prashant Kumar said “local inputs” had been crucial in the operation. “We have received significant support from the local citizens in the past and continue to receive it today. It is because of them that we are preventing such elements from gaining momentum.”