Jaibans Singh
It is now more than two weeks since the brutal double murder of a father and his only son at a village in Bhatinda and yet, the matter continues to remain unresolved. On 19 April 25, Vinay Partap Singh Brar, a well-known and respected farmer with land holdings in Village Abul Kharana and his 23-year-old son Surya Pratap Singh were brutally murdered. They were shot several times at point-blank range.
In less than 24 hours, an individual, Devinder Singh alias Rana surrendered to the police and confessed to the crime. On the basis of his statement one Karanpal Singh of Gurusar Jodha village was also arrested.
The catch in the tragic story lies in the fact that the murderers have categorically stated they carried out the crime on instructions of one Nachhatarpal Singh and his son Ravinder Singh. It is also known that for the past several years, Nachhatarpal Singh and his son have been attempting to forcefully occupy some land belonging to the Brar family. This could be the motive behind the murder.
The police are on the lookout for the alleged culprits, Nachhatarpal Singh and Ravinder Singh, but strangely they have evaded arrest for the last fifteen days. A possible reason behind evasion of arrest for such a long time could be that Nachhatarpal Singh is the father-in-law of Sukhjinder Singh Randhawa, Member of Parliament (Congress) from Gurdaspur.
It can also be assumed that in the long standing land dispute, Nachhatarpal Singh and his family chose to take this extreme step now because their Jawai (son-in-law) has gained a position of great political power.
A second reason could be that the deteriorating law and order situation in Punjab under incumbent Aam Aadmi Party led government is giving anti-social elements the courage to take such extreme steps on the belief that they will get away like many before them.
When high profile murders like those of Sidhu Moosewala, Sudhir Suri, Mangat Rai, Jaswinder Kaur Sidhu, Kabaddi player Sandeep Nangal and so many other are pending closure, then where does the rule of law exist to restrain powerful people like Nachhatarpal Singh?
Sikhs have been instructed by their Gurus to fight for justice and righteousness. The Sikh empire was established by Maharaja Ranjit Singh on the principles given by our Sikh Gurus and not to grab land. The Sarkar Khalsa, as the Sikh empire was called, gave full rights and protection to all segments of society.
The main cause for the downfall of Punjab and the Sikh community is that those responsible to lead the community have deviated totally from the principles of our Gurus and our ancestors. A pertinent example is this gruesome double murder that, due to the arrogance of power, has completely finished a noble family and that too for a miserable 20 acres of land. It is not as if Nachhatarpal Singh and his family could not survive without this land, they simply had their ego to satisfy. The case was sub-judice, yet, they refused to wait for the courts to give a decision.
If, as an extreme, one tries to understand enmity with Vinay Partap Singh, killing of his son who was just a student and nowhere involved in this dispute, points toward barbarity and moral degradation of the highest level.
This case represents all that is weak and degraded in modern day Punjab. There is horror in the collective psyche of the nation because of the Pahalgam murders, Punjabis too need to show similar concern over this brutal killing and make it a start point to ensure that we do not go the way of the lawless and mafia run regions.
Devinder Singh alias Rana and Karanpal Singh are mere pawns, the ends of justice will be met only when the alleged perpetrators, Nachhatarpal Singh and son Ravinder Singh face the law of the country.
Sukhjinder Singh Randhawa should stand up to his commitment to the people of Punjab and advise his relatives to surrender to the law of the land. . If the alleged perpetrators are innocent, then they have nothing to fear. If our leaders do not set an example, then there is no hope left for the people
It is also the right time for the government of Punjab and especially the Punjab Police to give a firm message that none is above the law of the land. An inability to do so will erode considerably the already fragile faith of the people in them.
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