SSP, DSP suspended for inaction
Tribune News Service

CHANDIGARH, Sept 6 — The Punjab government today placed Mr Bhushan Kumar Garg, Senior Superintendent of Police, Moga, and Mr Surinder Singh Sandhu, DSP (Rural), Moga, under suspension with immediate effect for showing "cowardice, failure of leadership, inaction and treachery to the police force" under their command, according to Director-General of Police, P.C. Dogra.

In a statement today he narrated the following sequence of events on account of which the two police officers had been suspended.

A head constable, Mr Tarsem Singh, who had been transferred to Badni Kalan police station on August 9 and was on leave, while going to his village had strayed into the suburban Moga locality of Basti Bohna presumably under the influence of liquor. Certain residents of the basti who had organised a "thikri pehra" detained him. Thereafter a mob gathered and beat him up. Even the father of Mr Tarsem Singh, along with his relations, reached the basti from nearby village and pleaded with the residents that his son, was not a criminal, but a head constable. All his pleas were ignored by the mob which beat him to death around 8.15 a.m.

The local police was informed at about 6.30 a.m. The DSP (Rural) got the information around 7.30 a.m. but he failed to act and did not go to the spot.

Mr Bhushan Kumar Garg, SSP, was also informed at around 8.30 a.m. He also failed to act to the situation and retrieve the body from the mob. He, reportedly, left his residence but returned to City I police station Moga, when he came to know that the crowd was much bigger in number.

The dead body of Tarsem Singh was dragged for over 3 km through the city, first in front of the city II police station and, thereafter, in front of the City I police station, where Mr Garg and Mr Surinder Singh Sandhu, and other police officers were present. Even at that time, they failed to retrieve the body and remained mute spectators.