This story is from June 23, 2019

Bargari sacrilege key plotter murdered in Nabha prison

A Dera Sacha Sauda follower and main conspirator in the 2015 Bargari sacrilege case was murdered by two jail inmates in New Nabha Jail of Patiala on Saturday evening
Bargari sacrilege key plotter murdered in Nabha prison
PATIALA: A Dera Sacha Sauda follower and main conspirator in the 2015 Bargari sacrilege case was murdered by two jail inmates in New Nabha Jail of Patiala on Saturday evening.
It is learnt that murder convicts Gursewak Singh and Maninder Singh killed Dera follower Mahinderpal Bittu, 49, by hitting him with iron rods on his head at around 5pm. He was taken to the Nabha civil hospital, but the doctors declared him brought dead following excessive bleeding.
The convicts are said to have picked up the rods from a site where some construction work was on.
Later in the evening, assistant superintendent Ajmer Singh and jail wardens Aman Giri and Major Singh were suspended for security lapses. It is learnt that Bittu's family had sought his shifting from the Nabha jail, citing risk to life.
Sources said that Bittu was booked in three separate cases related to desecration of Guru Granth Sahib in Bargari, Faridkot, in 2015. In one of the cases, he was accused of being involved in the theft of Sikhs’ holy book at Burj Jawahar Singh Wala village. He was also booked for pasting banners and writing threats and warning of desecration of Sikhs' scripture on the walls on September 25, 2015.
Slain dera man had got bail in Bargari case
Bittu was nabbed from Palampur in Himachal Pradesh on June 7, 2018, by the Special Investigation Team (SIT) headed by Ranbir Singh Khatra. Following the conviction of Dera chief Gurmeet Ram Rahim in 2017, Bittu had been hiding in Palampur.
Bittu had managed to get bail last year from a CBI court in the Bargari sacrilege case, however, he was facing trial in other cases of hurting religious sentiments and damaging public property.

Patiala Inspector General of Police AS Rai and deputy commissioner Kumar Amit visited the jail to assess the situation. The district administration has stepped up security in the jail and at the hospital where the Bittu’s body has been kept. The police also did not allow the Dera followers to gather near the jail.
The DC said, “We had beefed up the security near the jail and the hospital where the post-mortem of the deceased is being conducted." The state government has deployed 10 BSF and 2 Rapid Action Force companies in Punjab to tackle any untoward situation.
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