India & Abroad: 2 Killings & 1 Encounter

On 8 Apr, an Indian-origin Sikh builder and head of a Guru Nanak Sikh Gurdwara Buta Singh Gill was shot dead in Edmonton, Canada. The incident took place at a construction site allegedly linked to Gill's business, luxury home-building company Gill Built Homes. The homicide unit is investigating the shooting. Indian media is reporting the killing has followed extortion calls to Gill. On 3 Apr, former militant Rattandeep Singh was gunned down in Nawanshahr, Panjab. Rattandeep was considered close to Khalistan Commando Force head Paramjit Singh Panjwar and once carried a bounty of $12K. Rattandeep had spent many years with Panjwar in Pakistan before he was arrested during his visit to India in 2014. He hailed from Rohar village in Haryana’s Jind district and was staying in Karnal. When he was in Nabha High-Security Jail, Rattandeep had expressed threats to his life and was hesitant to travel for court hearings. The police suspect gangster Gopi of Nawanshahr to have played a role in the murder. On 9 Apr morning, one of the two main accused in the murder of Tarsem Singh, chief of Nanakmatta Gurdwara’s Dera Karseva (voluntary religious service), was shot dead in a police encounter in Haridwar, Uttarakhand. The encounter broke out after personnel of the Special Task Force and local police intercepted the two main accused – Sarvjeet Singh and Amarjeet Singh – while they were traveling on the same bike that they were using when they shot Tarsem Singh. Amarjeet was killed when police fired back, but Sarvjeet managed to flee.