Punjab: AAP govt faces trial by fire as Sidhu Moose Wala’s murder investigations begin

Moose Wala was among the 424 people whose security was withdrawn or reduced recently

siddhu

At just 27-years of age, Shubhdeep Singh Sidhu, a.k.a Sidhu Moose Wala, rose to the heights of popularity in Punjab, and abroad as a singer, rapper, and actor, before he ventured into politics, perhaps to make a difference, inspired by artists before him. On Sunday, Moose Wala, who had joined the Congress before the Punjab elections, was killed, allegedly by gangsters near his ancestral village Jawaharke in district Mansa, Punjab.

Police told the media that over 40 rounds were fired on the singer who was hit over eight times, and was declared dead at the Mansa civil hospital. Through the night social media had been buzzing with messages of mourning, horrific photos of the attack, and videos of the cries of his heart broken mother, who has alleged this was a planned murder. She has blamed the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) led Punjab government. “My son has been killed by Bhagwant Mann,” said the distraught mother.

 

 

Sidhu was reportedly attacked less than 24 hours after his security was withdrawn by the Punjab government. Images of the bullet riddled windscreen of the car, his limp bloodsoaked body, and an injured companion tell their own story as well.

According to news reports, Sidhu “was on the radar of gangsters for a long time,” and that some people have been detained in connection with the murder. Meanwhile, according to a report in Times of India, Sidhu Moose Wala’s family has not given consent to conduct the post-mortem on the body so far. Politicians have begun the blame game over the muder, and Opposition parties are united at the moment in attacking the state’s AAP government accusing them of a “breakdown of law and order in the state.”

Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann is now in the spotlight and will have to face the developing situation. After the death of actor-activist Deep Sidhu, this death too will have a deep impact on the people of Punjab. The CM has said “nobody involved will be spared” and appealed for “everyone to stay calm.” 

 

 

Congress leader Rahul Gandhi tweeted his “heartfelt condolences to his loved ones and fans from across the world.”

 

 

While Shiromani Akali Dal president Sukhbir Singh Badal said, “The CM also must honestly think if the cheaply populist decision to withdraw Mr. Moosewala’s security is directly responsible for the tragedy.”

 

 

Priyamvada of the iNC tweeted a video of Sidhu’s mother’s emotional outburst saying, “Shame on you Bhagwant Mann. Accept the responsibility and resign.”

 

 

Former Chief Minister Captain (retired) Amarinder Singh also blamed the AAP government calling it “a complete failure on the law and order front and I have been saying it since the beginning.” 

Shubhdeep Singh Sidhu Moose Wala, had contested the 2022 Punjab Assembly election on a Congress ticket from Mansa constituency. He had lost to AAP’s Dr Vijay Singla, reported the Tribune. The same Dr Singla has been now sacked from the Punjab Cabinet on corruption charges for which investigations are ongoing.

Director-General of Police VK Bhawra told the media that this murder so far seems to be an outcome of an “inter-gang rivalry”. The Hindu quoted him as saying, “The incident occurred around 5:30 P.M on Sunday. Mr. Moosewala was driving his vehicle and two private persons were accompanying him. Two vehicles from the front and one at the back blocked Mr. Moosewala’s vehicle and started firing in which he sustained bullet injuries. He was declared brought dead at the local hospital. We have recovered around 30 empty cases, which show at least three different weapons were used to fire.” 

According to the DGP, “The Lawrence Bishnoi gang has claimed the responsibility of the killing through a Canada-based operative. The investigation is underway. Mr. Moosewala had four commandos of the Punjab police for security, but in the wake of “ghallughara” and Operation Bluestar anniversary as every year, the security was thinned. Currently, he had two commandos. However, today [on Sunday] before leaving his house, Mr. Moosewala asked the two commandos to stay at home. Also, the singer has private bulletproof car but he did not take it. We are setting up a Special Investigation Team [SIT] to probe the case.” 

Moose Wala was among the 424 people whose security was  withdrawn or reduced recently. These according to media reports include “current and former legislators, religious sects’ heads, and police officers.”

 

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