4 of Faridkot family go missing in Pak
Balwant Garg
Tribune News Service
Faridkot, April 22
The mysterious disappearance of a daily wager and his three family members of Faridkot from Panja Sahib gurdwara in Pakistan has left the police and investigating agencies baffled.
Residents of Sadhanwala village in the district, 38-year-old Sunil Singh, his wife Sunita Devi (35), son Umer Singh (16) and daughter Huma Kaur (14) were part of a Sikh jatha that went to Pakistan on April 11 to celebrate Baisakhi at historical gurdwaras there.
Police sources said Sunil Singh went to Pakistan with a 10-day validity period (April 11-20) but he and his family members did not return.
Intelligence sources said a bag containing some clothes suspected to belong to Sunil Singh was found from room No. 115 at Panja Sahib gurdwara at Hasan Abdal, near Rawalpindi.
Their native Sadhawala village is situated at a distance of just 25 km from the Indo-Pak border. There is a military ammunition depot and firing range near the village. The disappearance of the family is thus a sensitive issue for the police and intelligence agencies.
Digging into the family history of Sunil Singh, the police today came to know that about five years ago, Sunil and his family had come to this village and stayed at an abandoned room outside a village dharamshala. He claimed himself to be the son of Gian Singh.
Villagers said Gian Singh, a labourer, had eloped with a girl about 40 years ago and never returned to the village. Sunil claimed that his father had fled to Rajasthan and now after his death, he wanted to settle in the ancestral village.
Harjit Singh, sarpanch, said the residents in the village did not know much about Sunil’s family history. He was working as a daily wager.
Charanjit Singh Sharma, Senior Superintendent of Police, Faridkot, said they were investigating the family history and Sunil Singh’s conduct. “We have sent a DSP to the village to collect details,” he said.
The sources Sunil Singh got his passport made in July 2014 on the basis of his ration card, Aadhar card and voter card. The police are investigating how a person with a temporary address got all these documents.
Their belongings found at Panja Sahib
- Those missing from the Faridkot family are Sunil Singh (38), his wife Sunita Devi (35), son Umer Singh (16) and daughter Huma Kaur (14)
- The family was part of a Sikh jatha that went to Pakistan on April 11 to celebrate Baisakhi at historical gurdwaras
- HS Bhullar, president, Bhai Mardana Yadgari Society, claims the family’s baggage along with their passports and identity cards have been found at Panja Sahib gurdwara in Pakistan
