In a stern message on accountability within the force, Chandigarh Police on Wednesday suspended five personnel after they were found “deficient in performance of their duties” during surprise inspections of law-and-order checkpoints across the city, days after the sensational daylight murder of a chemist shop cashier in Sector 11 exposed glaring lapses in naka enforcement.
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The suspended personnel include Sub-Inspector Bachhitar Singh of Sector 11 police station, Senior Constable Robbin and Constable Suman posted at the Sukhna Lake police post, Constable Deeksha of Sector 3, and Senior Constable Jaspal Kaur of IT Park police station.
The suspension orders were issued by the officiating Senior Superintendent of Police Sumer Partap Singh following surprise checks of police nakas established across the city as part of heightened anti-crime and anti-gangster operations.
“During surprise checking of law-and-order nakas, the following police personnel were found deficient in performance of their duties and are hereby placed under suspension with immediate effect,” the SSP stated in the order.
The disciplinary action assumes significance as it comes barely four days after 45-year-old pharmacy cashier Janki Das was gunned down inside a chemist shop in Sector 11 market by armed assailants who fired 13 rounds at close range before escaping.
The killing had triggered widespread concern because eyewitnesses claimed the attackers managed to flee despite the presence of a police naka only a few metres from the crime scene. Witnesses said the assailants calmly exited the market, fired in the air to disperse onlookers and escaped on a motorcycle even as bystanders raised an alarm.
The incident sparked sharp questions over the effectiveness of visible policing measures, particularly nakas and beat patrols, in one of Chandigarh’s busiest commercial sectors adjoining PGIMER.
Investigators have since identified the three shooters and launched a multi-state manhunt, leading to the arrest of two accused this evening.
Sources said the surprise inspections were ordered by the DGP Dr Sagar Preet Hooda as part of a wider review of field policing and naka performance following the Sector 11 shooting, which police believe was linked to an extortion network after Canada-based gangster Goldy Dhillon claimed responsibility through social media posts and audio messages.
The action is being viewed as the first visible sign of internal accountability after the incident exposed what many residents and traders described as a disconnect between the deployment of checkpoints and their effectiveness in preventing or responding to serious crimes.
Speaking to The Tribune, DGP Dr Hooda has stressed that policing standards would be enforced both against criminal elements and within the department itself.
“Chandigarh Police follows a zero-tolerance policy towards crime, organised gangs and extortion networks. The same standard applies within the force. Any police officer found negligent, complacent or deficient in the discharge of duty will face strict action. Accountability begins at home, and there can be no compromise when public safety is involved,” Dr Hooda said.
WIDER IMPLICATIONS
The suspensions come at a time when Chandigarh Police has intensified naka checking, surveillance and intelligence-based operations in the aftermath of the Sector 11 murder, which revived memories of earlier extortion threats linked to the same market.
While the police’s record in eventually solving major gang-related crimes remains strong, the daylight execution-style killing and the subsequent escape of the shooters have highlighted concerns over real-time response capabilities, checkpoint effectiveness and enforcement on the ground.
Senior officers indicated that surprise inspections of nakas and police deployments will continue in the coming days, with performance audits expected to be carried out across police stations and field units as part of efforts to plug operational gaps exposed by the high-profile murder.
The latest action signals that the fallout from the Sector 11 shooting is extending beyond the criminal investigation and into an internal review of policing practices, with the leadership keen to demonstrate that accountability will not stop at pursuing gangsters but will also encompass personnel found wanting in the line of duty.
