With the death toll in the sensational shooting case in Jammu and Kashmir border village of Arnia has risen to three with one more injured succumbed to his injuries, police arrested the wife of accused suspended constable Sadiq Ali.
As per the initial investigation conducted by the local police, two constables of Jammu and Kashmir Police namely Bhupinder Singh and Sadiq Ali were involved in the firing incident in which three persons including two brothers were killed, and one person is still battling for life in the hospital.
Sources said that the incident took place owing to some land and cash dispute. However, a case under FIR Number 77/2021 under Sections 302, 307, 3/25 Arms Act, and 4/25 Arms Act has been registered at Police Station Arnia and investigation started.
Accused constable's wife arrested by police; AK-47 recovered
Although both cops allegedly involved in the firing incident are absconding, police arrested Janu Bano, wife of suspended constable Sadiq Ali, a resident of Salehar Tehsil RS Pura, and recovered the AK-47 rifle used by the constables in the firing.
The arrested lady has reportedly hidden the weapon of offense in fields so she was arrested for providing logistic support to the accused. According to police, an AK-47 rifle was found in a hideout in the Arnia belt on the disclosure of the wife of one of the absconding cops.
"The weapon has been seized as it was found used in Arnia firing case. A lady namely Janu Bano, wife of suspended SgCt Sadeeq, a resident of Salehar Tehsil RS Pura was also arrested as she had kept the weapon of offence in a hideout", police said.
Death toll reaches three
The death toll in the Arnia shooting case has risen to three with one person critically injured in the incident succumbing to his injuries.
As reported earlier, bullet-riddled bodies of two persons, Sabar Chowdhary and Arif Chowdhary, were recovered from the shooting site in Salehar village of Arnia on Friday while Babar Chowdhary and Parveen Kumar were found in a critical condition and they were shifted to Government Medical College (GMC) and Hospital, Jammu for medical treatment.
Babar Chowdhary later succumbed to injuries while being shifted from GMC Jammu to a hospital in Punjab for specialized treatment. He was the elder brother of Sabar Chowdhary and a history-sheeter who had served two jail terms under the Public Safety Act (PSA) in the past.
Main accused constable Bhupinder Singh is still absconding
The main accused Constable Bhupinder Singh as well as his accomplice Constable Sadiq Ali is still on the large. The police have constituted multiple teams to arrest the accused.
On November 5, two persons were shot dead and two were critically wounded in village Salehar of Arnia when two cops identified as Bhupinder Singh, and Sadiq opened fire on four assailants in self defence.
Sources said that during the shootout service AK-47 rifle was used and the fired shells were also found on the spot. Cash and land dispute has been assumed as the reason behind the incident. However, cops continue their investigation to ascertain the exact facts.
SIT already constituted to probe firing incident
Jammu and Kashmir Police on Saturday constituted a Special Investigation Team (SIT) to further investigate the bloody clash between two groups allegedly over land and drugs payment dispute.
Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) Jammu Chandan Kohli has informed that a Special Investigation Team (SIT) headed by SP Headquarters Jammu has been constituted to probe the case. "I am also monitoring the case and both the cops will be arrested soon", he said and added that some land and cash dispute was the reason behind the incident, while the exact reason will be clear when the cops will be arrested.
