Chandigarh: Tarn Taran police have registered an FIR against five officers and initiated a departmental probe for allegedly facilitating the release of passport of Canada-based Indian-origin ‘druglord’ Shehnaz Singh alias Shawn Bhinder from Amritsar Regional Passport Office (RPO).Bhinder, who is wanted by the FBI, has since fled the country. Tarn Taran SSP Surendra Lamba maintained on Thursday that the action against the officers is part of an investigation into how and when Bhinder managed to escape. The FIR, registered on Wednesday following a preliminary enquiry by the Tarn Taran SP (headquarters), names Crime Investigation Agency (CIA) in-charge inspector Prabhjit Singh, ASI Lakhwinder Singh, constable Dharminder Singh, head constable Harkamal Singh, and ASI (local rank) Gurvinder Singh. All five have been booked under various sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS). Inspector Prabhjit and ASI Lakhwinder were suspended on April 3 after it emerged that their “misleading report” allowed Bhinder to secure his passport. According to the preliminary enquiry, both officers were fully aware of the nature of Bhinder’s crimes, his criminal antecedents and the high flight risk he posed. The report said, “They knowingly prepared a biased report in his favour to facilitate the release of his passport. They sent one copy directly to the Regional Passport Office, Ranjit Avenue, Amritsar, and another copy to the Senior Superintendent of Police, thereby misleading authorities and helping the accused.” Bhinder had been arrested in Ludhiana on March 10, 2025, in connection with a 2024 Arms Act case. His passport was impounded by the Amritsar RPO on April 11 of that year at the request of the Tarn Taran police. He was later granted bail by the Punjab and Haryana high court on Oct 1, 2025. In a video statement, SSP Surendra Lamba assured strict action against any official who worked against the spirit of the department to facilitate a criminal’s escape. Punjab Police had stated that Bhinder, a native of Mandiala village in Batala, lived in Brampton, Canada and is wanted by the FBI in connection with one of the largest drug seizures in US history on Feb 26, 2025, where federal officers arrested six of his associates and seized 391kg of methamphetamine, 109kg of cocaine, and four sophisticated weapons. MSID:: 130147425 413 |
