Ponty shootout case: Seven accused sent to judicial custody

A Delhi court today remanded in judicial custody seven accused persons who had surrendered before the court earlier this month after being listed in a charge sheet for their alleged roles in the killings of liquor baron Ponty Chadha and his younger brother Hardeep.
After they were produced before the court on expiry of their seven days' police remand, Chief Metropolitan Magistrate Raj Kumar Tripathi sent them to judicial custody till March 28.
Satnam Singh, Balkar Singh, Baaj Singh, Pargat Singh, Kulbir Singh, Bakshish Singh and Hardayal Singh were named in the charge sheet along with sacked Uttarakhand minorities panel chief S S Namdhari and 13 others for the November 17 killings of Ponty and Hardeep in a farm house here.

After absconding for over three months, the seven accused, all from Namdhari's group, surrendered on March 7.
The court had earlier issued non-bailable warrants against them and two others, who still remain untraceable.
The court had on December 28, 2012 ordered initiation of proceedings under section 82 of the Criminal Procedure Code (CrPC) to declare them as proclaimed offenders.

In a related development, Ponty's men Narender Alawat had moved a sessions court seeking bail on the ground that he is suffering from serious health problems due to injuries suffered by him during the alleged shootout.
The court has fixed the petition for hearing on March 18.

Delhi Police Crime Branch officials, meanwhile, informed the court today that on the basis of information gathered during custodial interrogation of the seven accused, it has recovered the guns and vehicles used by them during the commission of the crime.