Amritsar: Shiromani Akali Dal leader Mukhjit Singh Verka was shot dead by police in an alleged encounter in a village of Amritsar. Agitated supporters and party workers protested aggressively, blocked the highway and initially did not allow the police to move the body and car from the spot.
Deputy Commissioner of Police, Parampal Singh, denied the allegations that the victim was killed in an encounter due to mistaken identity. Singh said that the police personnel fired at Verka in retaliation when he allegedly took out his pistol and started firing at them.
“Police did not attack or carry out an encounter. The police personnel were doing their routine work. Even police personnel have been injured. Now the whole incident is being presented by protesters as if we attacked the victim. There is also no case of mistaken identity. When police tried to stop his car, which was without a registration number plate, he took out a pistol and started firing at police. What else could police have done? We had to take action,” Singh said.
A constable was also injured in the incident. Akali members have demanded that the case be registered as a homicide and the people responsible be arrested.
