Actor shoots neighbours in tree chopping row; 1 killed, 3 injured
Lucknow: Well known TV and film actor Bhupinder Singh has been charged with murder three days after he shot dead a man and injured three others when they protested against him for cutting trees which he intended to use for a fence that he was erecting on his Bijnor farm. Three policemen were suspended for dereliction of duty on Wednesday.
Bhupinder, 54, who’s acted in popular TV serials like ‘Yeh Pyaar Na Hoga Kam’, ‘Ek Haseena Thi’, Madhubala – Ek Ishq Ek Junoon’, ‘Tere Sheher Mein’ and ‘Rishton Ka Chakravyuh’, among many others, opened indiscriminate fire with his licensed gun on his neighbours on December 3, killing Govind Singh (23) on the spot. Govind’s father Gurdeep Singh, mother Meera Bai and elder brother Amreek Singh sustained serious injuries. Gurdeep and Amreek are in critical condition. Govind’s sister escaped and hid in the fields nearby.
Bhupinder and his three accomplices, Gyan Singh, Jivan Singh and Gurjant Singh – who were armed with lathis during the incident – have also been arrested. All of them face charges under IPC Sections 302 (murder), 307 (attempt to murder), 323 (voluntarily causing hurt), 504 (provocation), and 34 (criminal act by several persons). The police have initiated action to cancel Bhupinder’s arms license.
The violence erupted on Sunday at Bhupinder’s house in Kuankheda, Bijnor. The actor had recently returned to his native village where he owns more than 500 bighas of agricultural land.
The dispute between the neighbours goes back to October 17, when police were informed that Bhupinder was installing a fence on his farm and would be cutting down a few eucalyptus trees along the boundary of the two households. Gurdeep’s family had opposed this.
Bijnor SP Neeraj Kumar Jadaun said he had issued a “task order” a few days ago to resolve the matter amicably but local police did not take the row seriously. He added, “The dispute should not have escalated. It was the duty of the local cops to facilitate talks, but they were negligent.”
Jadaun suspended three officers — including Badhapur SHO Sumit Rathi, chowki in-charge Mohd Yaseen and constable Krishna Kumar — for dereliction of duty, and assigned the investigation to ASP Dharam Singh Machhal with a directive to submit a report within seven days.
Meera Bai said her family had earlier informed police about the brewing conflict but received no intervention. “Despite seeking help from the police on the day of the incident, our pleas went unanswered,” she told Jadaun.
