Shootings in Moga & Tarn Taran; Eight Laborers Killed by Speeding Car

October

2026

Assailants in a black SUV shot dead two cousins, 44-year-old Sahil Kumar Jindal alias Landi and 32-year-old Gagan Jindal, at Angadpura locality, Moga, on 25 Oct. At least three others were injured in the attack. On 26 Oct, Panjab Director General of Police Gaurav Yadav said, they have arrested five accused in connection with the case and that further probe is underway. He said, 'The preliminary investigation indicates that the motive behind the incident is an old rivalry between Landi and the Kuljeet group. Both parties have a previous history of fights and quarrels. It was a local inter-gang rivalry.' Concurrently, on 22 Oct, two masked men shot dead a daily wager, 45-year-old Kuldeep Singh, at Naushehra Pannuan town, Tarn Taran district. Kuldeep was returning home after work with his brother, Baj Singh, when he stopped at a shop on his way to his village. Two men arrived on a motorcycle and shot him after confirming his identity. Meanwhile, a speeding car hit eight Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (an employment guarantee scheme that continues despite being scrapped) laborers while they were resting and drinking water along the Jakhal-Lehra road near Alisher village, Sangrur district on 19 Oct. Of the deceased, six were women, and two were men. Police arrested the car’s driver, identified as Pargat Singh, a resident of Raidhrana village, Sangrur district. After four days of intense protests, the committee formed to demand compensation for the deaths and the state government has reached a compromise, agreeing to pay USD 10.5K to the family of each victim and USD 2.1K to each injured person. A committee member, Gobind Singh Chhajli, said the agreement was reached in a meeting between committee members and Sangrur Deputy Commissioner Poonamdeep Kaur. Meanwhile, a 25-year-old woman, Simarjit Kaur, from Sangrahur village, Faridkot district was allegedly held captive for about two years in Malaysia after traveling there in search of employment. After Faridkot Member of Parliament Sarabjit Singh Khalsa intervened, she returned home safely. Khalsa urged the youth and families seeking employment abroad to verify job agents to avoid falling prey to travel scams (earlier coverage).