From news dispatches

Chandigarh; In continuing violence in Punjab over 40 persons were killed, including Gen, Satnam Singh of the KCF and three members of one family over the week,

On October 16, 13 people, including a CRPF con stable and three members of a family, were killed and a bus was hijacked and set on fire, police said.

Gursewak Singh alias Babla, selfstyled Lt. Com. of the Khalistan Commando Force, arrested two days ago, escaped from police custody by jumping into the Satluj river near Ferozepur.

Babla, who carried a re ward of Rs 30,000 and was wanted for about 30 killings, was being taken for recovery of arms when he dodged the policemen, the senior superintendent of police said.

Three members of a family were killed in Devidaspur village (Majitha district). The assailants intruded into the house of one Mukhtlar Singh and shot him and his father-in-law dead.

The killers then dragged Mukhtiar Singh’s wife outside the village and gunned her down there. They took away two rifles and a scooter belonging to the family.

A PSEB employee at Buttar Kalan village in Batala district and in another incident, one Jugal Kishore was killed near Jalandhar.

A Punjab police spokesman said Satnam Singh was killed in & shootout in Sarla village in Amritsar. He was a close associate of Harjinder Singh Jinda, the man accused in the assassination of Indian army chief, Gen. A. S. Vaidya at pune and had escaped from police custody in January last year from Jalandhar district.

Two persons were killed in an explosion in a house in Tibba Sahib Mohalla area of Hoshiarpur. The deceased have not yet been identified. Police suspect they were killed while making a bomb.

One person was shot dead by two gunmen near his house in Fatehgarh panjtoor in Ferozepur district.

Three people were injured when gunmen at tacked a Ferozepore bound Punjab Roadways bus last night near Machhi Bugra village in Ferozepoge district. The victims included a woman and a child.

The Udhenwal police picket in Srihargobindpur in Batala police district was attacked with rockets. No one was injured in the attack as the rockets missed the target and hit the outer wall of the picket, which was damaged.

A gang of eight (Chandigarh) kidnapped Balwinder Singh and Osher Singh from Johal Dhaiwala in Tarn Taran district and shot them dead in the nearby fields.

Two unidentified persons shot dead a person in a hotel in Jalandhar.

Elsewhere in the state, six people were killed and three others injured.

A militant committed suicide by swallowing cyanide while another was killed in an encounter with security forces near Barna Village in Phagwara subdi vision of Kapurthala district.

Among the victims of the violence was a retired Army officer Tarlochan singh, who was shot dead in Omarpura villege.

Reports said Ghajan Singh was kidnapped from Ghariala village and later killed. Another person was shot dead in Ohariwal vil Jage in Amritsar.

In Nakodar town, a woman, Kamlesh Rani was killed.

Six men armed with AK 47 assault rifles dragged Manmohan Singh and Santokh Singh fom a farmhouse and shot them dead.

Farmer Joginder Singh was shot while he was returning home in village Ghastipur in Amritsar.  

Article extracted from this publication >>  October 20, 1989