01032025-LT-01.qxd 2/28/2025 11:36 PM Page 1 c m y b Ludhiana tribune CRACKDOWN ON DRUG PEDDLERS, 12 ROUNDED UP GANG OF THIEVES BUSTED, TWO ARRESTED YOUNG RAPPERS FROM HIMACHAL ARE MAKING WAVES A crackdown has been launched against drug peddlers in villages falling under Dehlon block. P2 A gang of thieves was busted with arrest of two and five bikes and eight mobile phones recovered. P2 Smitten by the hip-hop culture and rap music, youngsters are becoming a sensation on social media. P4 » » FORECAST PARTLY CLOUDY MAX 19°C | MIN 15°C YESTERDAY MAX 25°C | MIN 18°C SUNSET SATURDAY 6.25 PM SUNRISE SUNDAY 6:52 AM » SATURDAY | 1 MARCH 2025 | LUDHIANA Two car-borne youths fire shots in air near dhaba Tribune News Service The bungalow of tehsildar Jagsir Singh Saran at Ajit Villas, South City, in Ludhiana, where a VB team conducted a raid on Friday; and (right) accused Gurcharan Singh after being arrested by Vigilance Bureau officials in Ludhiana on Friday. Advocate held, tehsildar among 9 booked in fake land deal case Nikhil Bhardwaj Tribune News Service Ludhiana, February 28 The Vigilance Bureau (VB), Ludhiana, has registered a case against nine individuals for fraudulently executing a sale deed of a 14 kanal piece of land in Ludhiana, which belongs to an NRI residing in the USA, using forged documents. In this connection, the VB today arrested advocate Gurcharan Singh of Ludhiana, who played a key role in facilitating the fake land registration worth crores. Tehsildar (west) Jagsir Singh Saran executed the registration of land worth Rs 6 crore. The VB team also conducted a raid on the bunglow of the tehsildar located at Ajit Villas, South City, today and recovered some incriminating documents pertaining to his properties along with some other important documents. The VB is likely to initiate a probe to inquire about the assets acquired by the revenue officer through fraudulent practices. Disclosing this here, an official spokesperson of the VB said a surprise check was conducted by VB, Ludhiana range, at the sub-registrar office, tehsil (west), Ludhiana, on February 21, following intelligence inputs regarding a fraudulent land registration. Investigations revealed that a sale deed of this prime land near Lodhowal-Verka bypass had been executed on February 11, between Deep Singh (seller) and Deepak Goel of Panchkula (buyer) for Rs 30 lakh, whereas its market value was Rs 6 crore (approximately). However, it was found that Deep was residing in the USA, while an imposter had appeared at the tehsil office for the registration. He further stated that the original sale deed was taken into possession during the surprise check and the verification confirmed the fraud. The sale deed was executed by Saran in the presence of person who was impersonating as Deep Singh. On behalf of Goel, an individual named Amit Gaur signed the registration documents. The witnesses, including property dealer Raghbir Singh, advocate Gurcharan Singh and nambardar Baghel Singh, had identified the imposter as the genuine landowner. Further inquiry established that the land in question was located at Noorpur Bet village, under the jurisdiction of Ladhowal police station. Deep, aged 54, has been living in the USA with his family. During the fraudulent registration process, the imposter used a forged Aadhaar and PAN cards, misrepresenting his age as 39 years (born in 1985), whereas the actual Deep Singh was born in 1971. The spokesperson added that the probe also found some serious lapses on the part of revenue officials, who failed to verify the antecedents of those involved. Based on the evidence and investigation report, an FIR dated February 27, was registered at the Economic Offences Wing and further investigation was entrusted to the VB. The accused include Saran, buyer Deepak Goel, nambardar Baghel Singh, registry clerk Krishan Gopal, Gurcharan, Gaur, the impersonator, a computer operator and Raghbir. Ludhiana VB SSP Ravinderpal Singh Sandhu said that on the basis of the investigation report the VB arrested Gurcharan, who had signed as witness and identified the fake Deep Singh. He would be produced in court tomorrow. Meanwhile, efforts were under way to arrest the remaining accused. Following the development, the revenue officials in Punjab have announced to go on strike for an indefinite period. Bar council poll: Saggar elected president, Bedi vice-president Council order keeps official declaration pending Ludhiana, February 28 Two car-borne youths fired shots in the air at a dhaba on GT Road near Jagaon. An employee of a dhaba after witnessing the crime immediately informed the dhaba owner, following which a complaint was filed and a case was registered yesterday against unknown persons. Complainant Parminder Singh of City Enclave, Jagraon, said that he owned Raja Dhaba and had been running it at Aligarh village on GT Road for the last 35 years. On February 26, he was present at the dhaba around 10 pm when his worker Gurjit came running and was looking frightened. His worker informed him that two youths came in a car and after stopping it in the parking lot, they came out and started firing in the air from a revolver and pistol. As per his worker, after opening fire, the accused sat in their car and fled towards Jagraon side. “After checking the footage of a CCTV camera, it was found that the car’s registration number was PB 10 Y 9074 and its colour was white, and both unidentified youths were wearing printed T-shirts. Firing in the air could have endangered the lives of others. My employee was the lone eyewitness of the incident and strict action should be taken against these youths,” added the complainant. Investigating officer Assistant Sub-Inspector Shaminderjit Singh said that after registering a case, further investigation was launched and efforts were on to identify the suspects. Whether the accused were carrying licensed weapons or not it would be known only after they are nabbed. Trees axed for laying tiles on street, villagers raise concern Man dies, drug overdose suspected; 1 arrested Manav Mander Ludhiana, February 28 After a man died due to suspected drug overdose, the Dugri police yesterday registered a case against the friend of the deceased, identified as Tarun of Manakwal village, and arrested him. The case was registered on the charge of culpable homicide not amounting to murder. The complainant, wife of the deceased, told police that on February 26, her husband was brought home by the abovesaid accused in an unconscious Tribune News Service Ludhiana, February 28 Full-grown trees have been axed at Avtar Nagar in New Rajguru Nagar village for installation of interlocking tiles. With green cover already decreasing in the city, making way for concrete structures, area residents have raised serious concern over the cutting of trees. A complaint has also been shot in this regard to the National Green Tribunal (NGT). “Installing interlocking tiles is a sign of development, but amid this environment should not be ignored. One meter area around trees should be left so that these can breathe and water can be soaked in, but surprisingly, trees have been chopped in the name of development,” said Dr Harpreet Singh, an area resident. He further added that trees on village streets are the property of the panchayat. The trees, which had commercial value in thousands, have been cut and timber has been used or sold. A formal inquiry should be marked and action should be taken as per law. “End-to-end streets should not be made as it will hamper rainwater harvesting. Rainwater cannot be discharged in a sewerage hole. If streets are made from edge to edge, where will the rainwater go? Tribune News Service state. After preparing the dinner she went to the room and tried to wake him up, but he didn’t. The victim’s wife said, “After sometime my husband regained little consciousness and went to the washroom, where he started vomiting and his health deteriorated.” “He was immediately taken to a private hospital, where he died during treatment. I suspect that my husband died after the abovesaid accused gave him an overdose of some drugs,” revealed the deceased’s wife. Tailor dies by ‘suicide’ Tribune News Service Trees have been cut for laying interlocking tiles at Avtar Nagar, New Rajguru Nagar village. Making the road concrete from edge to edge is against environmental norms and maintaining green belt along the streets and roads is also compulsory,” added another area resident. Dr Harpreet further added that he had grown plants along the wall of his house which had been cut without any written intimation to him. “Environmental clearance should have been obtained from the govern- ment departments concerned to construct the street by removing the green belt. Nikhil Sharma, sarpanch of New Rajguru Nagar village, when contacted in this regard said that the trees were chopped by the PSPCL for installing overhead cables before he had taken over as sarpanch and the work for installation of interlocking tiles was also going on as the streets were in dire need of repair. Only few rose shrubs Ludhiana, February 28 A tailor died under suspicious circumstances at his residence in Bhattian Colony yesterday. The deceased reportedly died by suicide by hanging himself from an iron rod. The police is also investigating his (deceased) relationship with a woman with whom he had an affair. The deceased has been identified as Harjinder Pal Singh. The deceased’s mother Manju said that she had two sons and Harjinder used to work as a tailor. Manju said that as per her c m y b routine she gave tea to her son in the morning and went to work. When she returned from work in the evening, she saw that the room was open. Her son was hanging from an iron rod and she immediately raised an alarm and someone informed the police. Manju added that she also found photos of her son with a married woman on his mobile. She didn’t know if the said woman had any role that forced her son to end his life. Meanwhile, according to investigating officer ASI Davinder Singh, further investigation in the case had been launched. Rajneesh Lakhanpal Legal Correspondent Ludhiana, February 28 The annual District Bar Association (DBA) election witnessed a massive voter turnout of 83.38%, with Vipan Saggar winning the post of president by securing the highest number of votes. However, despite a decisive victory, his official declaration as DBA president remains pending due to an order from the Bar Council of Punjab and Haryana. Saggar’s candidacy was initially cancelled by the returning officer following a complaint by a rival contestant regarding alleged irregularities. However, the special committee of the Bar Council of Punjab and Haryana intervened on February 26, overturning the order and allowing him to contest. The council’s decision came with the rider that the final result would be subject to an inquiry into allegations that Saggar had deposited subscription fee of several lawyers. The matter is now scheduled for hearing before the council on March 6, after which the official result will be declared. Despite legal hurdles and opposition from rival camps, Saggar’s popularity soared, with lawyers cutting across factional lines to vote in his favour. His supporters described his victory as a reflection of the legal fraternity’s trust and a response to attempts to sideline him from the election process. In a landslide win, Saggar secured 1,749 votes, leaving his closest rival, Gurpreet Singh Arora, far behind with just 404 votes. Other candi- DBA presidential candidate Vipan Saggar with his supporters after winning the election. PHOTO: ASHWANI DHIMAN dates in the fray included TPS Dhaliwal (194 votes), Harinder Singh Narang (92 votes), Sanjeev Malhotra (60 votes), and Harvinder Singh (6 votes). Of the 3,021 registered voters, 2,519 exercised their franchise, while seven votes were declared invalid. Veteran members of the legal community, including five former DBA presidents — Harish Rai Dhanda, Hemant Kalia, Parupkar Singh Ghumman, Naval Kishore Chhibber, and Gurkirpal Singh Gill — welcomed Saggar’s victory. This year’s elections marked a shift towards youth leadership, with the legal fraternity placing its trust in the next generation. Many lawyers viewed this as a move towards a more dynamic and reform-oriented Bar association. Interestingly, this year’s election campaign was far less extravagant compared to previous years, with a focus on real issues rather than lavish spending. For the vice-president’s post, Gagandeep Singh Bedi emerged victorious, defeating his closest rival Anil Saggar by 214 votes. The final tally is as follows: Gagandeep Singh Bedi (993 votes), Anil Saggar (779 votes), Bhatia (509 votes), Charanjit Singh Channa (93 votes), Gursimar Singh Alag (34 votes), Rakesh Kumar Gupta (64 votes). Himanshu Walia has been elected as DBA secretary. He defeated his nearest rival candidate Harsh Sharma with 658 votes. Himanshu got 1,141 votes, whereas Harsh got 483, Rajinder Singh Bhandari 465 and Hariom Jindal 407 votes. The elections were conducted under the supervision of returning officer Lokesh Batta, assisted by a 50-member team of lawyers. Polling was held from 9 am to 4.30 pm across six booths. While the key officebearers have been elected, the counting for the six posts of executive members will take place tomorrow at 11 am.