26-year-old Sukhjit Singh, the newly elected sarpanch of Chana Gulabsingh Wala Rural Municipality of Bhadaur Constituency in Barnala District, was killed on Sunday evening due to a fight. His father Amarjit Singh and two others were also injured in the attack.
Amarjeet Singh alleged that the attack, which involved more than 50 people, was motivated by his son’s efforts to stop drug abuse in the village. “They attacked us with sharp weapons. We were only 5-6 people and could not defend ourselves,” he said.
Balkaran Singh, Sukhjeet’s cousin, said the incident came to light after Sukhjeet confronted a group of youths who used injecting drugs. “He warned me not to use drugs when he returned home from my house. Soon after that, a mob of over 50 including rival candidates came to his house and attacked us. “Sukhjeet was seriously injured and later died on the way to the hospital,” he said.
Sukhjeet was initially taken to Bhadaur Hospital, which reportedly did not have oxygen facilities, before being referred to Barnala Civil Hospital.
Local police have ruled out any drug-related motive, saying the killing was due to an old enmity. SSP Barnala Sandeep Malik said, “An FIR has been registered against rival candidate Gurcharan Singh and some unknown persons. Preliminary investigation showed that the attack was due to the enmity of the sarpanch after the election.
Accused Gurcharan Singh was defeated by Sukhjeet by 450 votes in the sarpanch election held in October. According to the police, ever since the results came out, there have been frequent fights between the two. On Sunday, Gurcharan and his supporters attacked Sukhjeet with sharp weapons, in which he was seriously injured.
The injured Amarjeet Singh has been referred to AIIMS Bathinda for further treatment. Officials said he is currently stable.
Both Sukhjeet and Gurcharan came from simple farming families, each owning five acres of land and relying on contract farming for additional income.
In 2018, when the village was reserved for women candidates, a candidate from Gurcharan’s family lost the election. This time, former sarpanch and Sukhjeet’s aide Gurmail Singh supported him in the election. The village has about 1,000 voters, and Sukhjit’s landslide victory widened the rift between the two families.
Sources informed that Sukhjeet took active steps after his victory Free the village from drugs. However, this reportedly led to a clash with some people, including Gurcharan, who disagreed with his approach.
SSP Malik said, “So far, the motive seems to be electoral rivalry. We have not found any evidence to link the attack to a drug-related case. Further investigation is on.”
Meanwhile, AAP MLA from Bhadaur Labsingh Ugoke reached Barnala Civil Hospital and met the injured families.
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