Gurdaspur, March 1 The family of Ranjit Singh, one of the accused in the murder of two police officers in Gurdaspur, who was killed in an encounter with the police, staged a protest on Sunday demanding a CBI investigation into his death.
The family also demanded a fresh autopsy by the PGIMER in Chandigarh.
Local residents and representatives of social and religious organizations also joined the protest on the Babbri Bypass in Gurdaspur.
Punjab Police ASI Gurnam Singh and home guard Ashok Kumar were found dead on February 22 with gunshot wounds inside a checkpost at Adhian village in Gurdaspur district, about 2 km from the International Border with Pakistan.
Police later identified Ranjit Singh (19), Inderjit Singh (21) and Dilawar Singh (19) for their alleged involvement in the killings, believed to have been carried out at the behest of their Pakistan-based handlers backed by the intelligence agency, Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI).
Ranjit, a resident of Adhian village, was shot dead in an exchange of fire with the police on Wednesday after he fled from their custody.
Ranjit's family has raised questions over the encounter, which has sparked criticism from several political leaders who have sought a judicial probe into the matter.
Ranjit's family also refused to accept his body for cremation until they receive "justice".
Congress MLA Sukhpal Singh Khaira, who participated in Sunday's protest, termed the encounter as a "fake" and alleged that Punjab had become a police state.
"If the AAP government can authorize police to kill people like this, then Arvind Kejriwal should remove the pictures of B.R. Ambedkar and shut down the criminal justice system in Punjab, disband the army of prosecution, and announce that only the police will decide who will live and who will die," Khaira said in a post on X.