The State Special Operation Cell (SSOC) on Saturday arrested a man from Rajasthan for allegedly providing shelter to a culprit involved in the RPG attack at Punjab Police’s Intelligence Wing headquarters in May this year.
The accused, identified as Mohammad Touseef Chishti alias Chinky, was produced in the court of a duty magistrate here on Saturday and remanded to five days of police custody.
Punjab Director General of Police (DGP) Gaurav Yadav said that after Charat Singh’s interrogation, the police zeroed down and arrested Syed Mohammad Touseef Chisty alias Chinky from Ajmer in Rajasthan.
The DGP said that investigations so far have revealed that accused Chinky had been in touch with gangster Lakhbir Landa for around 5-7 years, and it was on Landa’s directions that Chinky had arranged a stay for Charat at a guesthouse named Al-Khadim in Ajmer. Charat has revealed that Landa had sent around Rs 3 to 4 lakh in cash to Chinky.
Yadav said that another accomplice of Charat — identified as Sunil Kumar alias Kala — provided him a hideout on the directions of America-based Jagroop Singh alias Roop and has also been arrested from Ropar. Jagroop Roop, a native of Shri Anandpur Sahib, is considered to be a close aide of Lakhbir Landa.
The DGP added that the accused Charat is a habitual offender and has several cases of heinous crimes — including murder, attempt to murder, and those under the Arms act — registered against him in Punjab. He had also procured an RPG, AK-47, and other weapons from across the border with the help of Pakistan-based terrorist Harwinder Singh alias Rinda. The accused was serving a life sentence in a murder case, and at the time of the RPG attack was out on parole. During his parole period, Charat reassembled his associates, including Nishan Kulla and others, from Tarn Taran area to carry out the RPG attack, which was aimed at destabilizing communal harmony and peace in the state.
The SSOC has so far also recovered an Ak -56 along with 100 rounds of ammunition and a .30 bore pistol from accused Charat Singh.
