Akali ex-MLA Valtoha charged with murder

Amritsar, January 27

The court of Additional Sessions Judge, Tarn Taran, has framed charges of murder and trespass against two-time Akali MLA Virsa Singh Valtoha in a case dating back to 1983. It has set February 14 as the date for recording evidence, as per court orders dated January 17, a copy of which is with The Tribune.

Two others booked in connection with Dr Sudarshan Kumar Trehan’s murder in September 1983, Hardev Singh and Baldev Singh, were nabbed and acquitted on November 11,1990.

Valtoha was never arrested. Decades later, the police presented a challan against him in a Patti court in 2019 under Sections 302 and 307 of the IPC, directing him to appear on March 13. The police were forced to act after the Punjab Human Rights Organisation (PHRO) alleged a police-politician nexus. A Special Investigation Team was constituted to probe the case after 35 years with the police filling a supplementary challan. — TNS