Probe ordered into bigamy charge against Punjab SP

The Punjab Police on Friday ordered a probe into the bigamy charge against its superintendent of police Salwinder Singh, who has been questioned by the NIA over his alleged abduction by terrorists who later attacked the Pathankot air force base.

The Punjab DGP marked the probe to Hoshiarpur Senior Superintendent of Police Dhanpreet Kaur after Karanpreet Kaur of Tanda Urmur in Punjab claimed she was married to Salwinder Singh in April 1994 when he was posted as an assistant sub-inspector in Amritsar.

"A fact-finding enquiry has been instituted by the DGP, Punjab, on the news reports regarding statement of a Tanda-based woman who has levelled accusations of bigamy against SP Salwinder Singh," a Punjab Police spokesman said here.

The SSP has been asked to submit a report at the earliest, the spokesman said.

National Investigation Agency officials are already questioning Salwinder Singh since Tuesday evening over his claims that he was abducted by suspected Pakistani terrorists who later attacked the Indian Air Force base in Pathankot, 250 km from here, in a pre-dawn attack on January 2.

The NIA team took the police officer on Wednesday to various spots to reconstruct the sequence of events before the terror attack.

His jeweller friend Rajesh Verma and cook Madan Gopal are also being questioned.

The SP is being questioned as a suspect due to inconsistencies in his version of his alleged abduction and the statements of his two companions, a police source said.

Seven security personnel, including an officer of the National Security Guard, were killed in the Pathankot attack. All six terrorists involved in the incident were also killed.