Former student leader, Gurlal Brar.Three unidentified assailants gunned down former student leader, Gurlal Brar, 26, outside Playboy Club inside City Emporium Mall at Phase-1, Industrial Area, on Saturday night. The assailants fired around nine bullets, of which three hit the victim, who was parking his white Fortuner car.
Bullets hit in the victim’s head, one hand and in the shoulder. The incident took place around 12.25 am. Gurlal Brar was the former state president of Student Organisation of Panjab University (SOPU). A native of Kot Kapura in district Faridkot, Punjab, he was linked with the Lawrence Bishnoi gang. Police claimed a rivalry between two-three gangs including two Punjab based could be the reason behind the murder.
“Most probably, a gang rivalry is the reason behind the murder. Different teams have been constituted. We have certain specific leads in this connection. Efforts are being made to identify the assailants,” said SSP (UT) Kuldeep Singh Chahal.
Sources said that though Brar had a valid arms licence, it is yet to be confirmed whether or not he was carrying a weapon when the incident took place.
“Gurlal Brar along with a friend, Mandeep Singh, had gone Para to celebrate a friend’s birthday. Brar left the event while it was still underway, telling his friends that he had to hand over his car to someone. He asked them to pick him from the parking of City Emporium Mall. While he was parking the car outside the mall, two gun wielding youths opened fire at him, while he was still inside the four-wheeler. A third accomplice was on a motorcycle. They all escaped from the spot. Subsequently, Brar’s friends reached rushed him to GMSH-16, where doctors declared him dead,” said sources.
Eyewitness Vikas Tiwari, a security guard at Vallet Parking in the mall, reported to police that a white colour Fortuner car came from the Centra Mall side and the driver of that vehicle parked it on the footpath in front of the main gate of City Emporium. In the meantime, two young boys carrying pistols came from the Centra Mall side and shot dead the person sitting in the white car. Both the boys fled from there after riding a motorcycle along with another boy.
“We obtained the CCTV footage. Three men arrived on a two-wheeler and two of them fired the bullets on the victim. Gurlal Brar was recently booked for slapping a woman under the charges of outraging the modesty of women and illegal confinement outside the Para night club. His accomplice, Mohit Bhardwaj, was arrested in the matter. He was absconding. All the aspects behind the murder are being probed,” said DSP (east) Gurmukh Singh.
“Brar was also involved in running a racket of gambling in and around Kot Kapura in Punjab,” said sources.
The vicitm was staying in a rented accommodation in Sector 82, Mohali. Moments after the news of his murder broke out, scores of his supporters including former student leaders rushed to the spot. A team of the Punjab police from Mohali also visited the scene of the crime. The team interacted with DSP (East) Gurmukh Singh and other officers at PS Industrial Area. A case of murder and Arms Act was filed.
Facebook post taking responsibility goes viral, police denounce
A Facebook post titled Devinder Bambhia group claimed the responsibility of Brar’s murder. Police maintained the post appeared to be fake as names of some former student leaders were mentioned in it. The post claimed that Brar was shot dead for taking revenge of the killing of Lavi Deora, a gangster who was murdered in Faridkot three years ago. The post was deleted later. Police said its is being probed.
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