In a significant development, the Kapurthala police arrested four members of a Punjab Police Special Task Force (STF) for their involvement in a false drug case against a local resident, Kuldeep Singh, alias Sonu. The incident dates back five years, when the accused STF personnel framed Sonu under the NDPS Act, accusing him of possessing heroin and poppy husk.
The case was registered at the Kapurthala City police station in 2019. Sonu, claiming the charges were fabricated, filed a writ petition in the Punjab and Haryana High Court. Following the court’s ruling in his favor last year, an FIR was lodged against the five police personnel on December 21, 2023.
The arrested officers are Assistant Sub-Inspector Sylwaster Masih and Constables Major Singh, Gurvinder Singh, and Sham Masih. Major Singh was apprehended on Saturday, and the other three were arrested the day before. They were granted a three-day remand by the authorities. The fifth suspect, Assistant Sub-Inspector Kuldeep Singh, remains at large.
The case began on September 23, 2019, when Sylwaster Masih allegedly orchestrated the arrest of Sonu, claiming to have found 20 grams of heroin and 250 grams of poppy husk in his possession near Kusht Ashram in Kapurthala. However, Sonu contended that the contraband was planted on him after he refused an extortion demand. CCTV footage from his service station contradicted the police’s claims, showing the officers visiting him hours before the FIR was filed.
After presenting his case in court, Sonu was supported by a high court ruling on October 6, 2023, directing the formation of a Special Investigation Team (SIT) to probe the misconduct. The team was headed by the Jalandhar DIG, with the Kapurthala SSP and a Jalandhar DSP as members. As of now, four of the accused police officers have been arrested, and a manhunt is underway for the fifth.
Kapurthala DSP Harpreet Singh confirmed the arrests and stated that the accused officers were posted in various locations including Jalandhar, Patiala, Gurdaspur, and Kapurthala.
