post-mortem report of Ranjit Singh (19), who was killed in an alleged encounter, has confirmed that the cause of death was firearm injuries, even as his family said they were not satisfied and would review the videography of the autopsy before making further comments.
Ranjit’s paternal uncle, Harvinder Singh Malhi, reiterated the family’s claim that he was killed during custodial interrogation. He said the family would consult lawyers and examine the video recording of the post-mortem before deciding the future course of action.
“Which security agency takes a person for recovery of arms in the dead of the night like they did with Ranjit?” Malhi said.
The autopsy was conducted on March 3 by a team of doctors from Government Medical College, Amritsar. The panel included Dr Sukhdeep Singh, Medical Officer; Dr Satinder Pal Singh, Associate Professor; and Dr Harsh Kumar, Senior Resident.
The post-mortem was carried out in the presence of Chief Judicial Magistrate Surekha Dadwal. The court had also sought CCTV footage from cameras installed near the encounter site at Puranashala, about 25 km from where the police vehicle carrying Ranjit Singh had overturned.
The police have claimed that Ranjit Singh escaped after the vehicle by which he was being taken for the recovery of weapons allegedly used in the killing of ASI Gurnam Singh and Home Guard jawan Ashok Kumar, overturned.
The autopsy report said all injuries were ante-mortem in nature and that there were no signs of torture.
However, questions remain over how Ranjit Singh, who was reportedly handcuffed, obtained a motorcycle and a pistol and fired at CIA in-charge Gurmeet Singh during the encounter.
A senior police officer said the department would prove its claims in the court and alleged that the family had been misled by some people