3 months on, no forensic report in DSP Dalbir Singh Deol’s murder case; mystery persists

Deepkamal Kaur

Jalandhar, April 5

Three months after the murder of Arjuna awardee DSP Dalbir Singh Deol, who was allegedly shot dead with his service revolver by an autorickshaw driver, the city police have filed a challan in the case in a local court, but without a forensic report.

Unanswered questions

1. Why didn’t the DSP, with a leg injury, call anyone to drop him home and instead hire an auto late at night?

2. Why was Deol in no hurry to go back home on the New Year’s Eve and hung around with the auto driver?

3. How could the driver, with no criminal record, use a sophisticated Glock pistol?

4. How many shots were fired? Reports say two, but second shell was never found.

The police filed the challan on the last day of the expiry of 90 days after the crime. A failure to do so would have paved the way for bail to the accused.

The DSP, an Asian Games gold medallist in weightlifting, was found dead with injury marks on the back of his head along the Basti Bawa Khel canal here on January 1.

Since no forensic report was attached with the challan, most questions pertaining to charges against the accused autorickshaw driver, Vijay Kumar, still remain unanswered. Two forensic reports are pending in the case — one on ballistics regarding the Glock pistol of the DSP and another a pathology of the gunshot wound.

District Attorney Anil Kumar said since the police were yet to get the reports, the challan had largely been based on the FIR. The details mentioned in the challan were based on the statements of Baljit Singh, brother-in-law of the slain DSP.

The challan carries the same old version that Deol, who hailed from Khojewal village of Kapurthala, had come to Jalandhar on December 31 evening along with Shivam Joshi, whose car had been hit by him. The DSP was to pay damages for the repair of the car in Jalandhar. He hailed an autorickshaw to go back home, consumed liquor on the way and had dinner with the accused at a dhaba. Later, he had a tiff with the driver, who snatched his 9 mm Glock pistol and shot him.

The police, not being able to detect the gunshot wound, initially suspected it to be an accident. It was on the second day that the murder theory was confirmed. Kamaljit Singh, SHO, Division No. 2, said, “Since the time period to file the challan was lapsing, we had to file it without the two forensic reports, which would be submitted as and when received.” The next date of hearing in the case is April 18.