DW BUREAU / Chandigarh

An investigation by the Special Investigation Team (SIT) has found that the jailed gangster Lawrence Bishnoi's interview was recorded by a private TV channel when he was in Punjab police custody, and not in the high-security Bathinda Jail as widely perceived. The SIT, headed by Punjab State Human Rights Commission (PSHRC) DGP Prabodh Kumar, concluded that Bishnoi's interview was recorded by the TV channel while he was in police custody at CIA, Kharar (Mohali) on the intervening night of 3-4 September 2022. The interview was finally telecast by the channel on 13 March 2023, almost six months after it was recorded.

The SIT had earlier submitted its investigation report to the Punjab and Haryana High Court in a sealed cover. The report was made public on Wednesday.

Sources informed that the same TV channel conducted the second interview when Bishnoi was reportedly in Jaipur jail on the intervening night of 4-5 March 2023, not in any Punjab jails. Interestingly, Bishnoi, who is currently in the Ahmedabad jail, told the SIT during interrogation that he was interviewed by the TV channel while he was in the Bathinda jail.

It may be mentioned that while hearing a suo motu matter related to the use of mobile phones by inmates within jail premises, a division bench of Punjab and Haryana High Court comprising Justice Anupinder Singh Grewal and Justice Kirti Singh had ordered the registration of FIRs and probe by an SIT headed by IPS officer Prabodh Kumar into the two interviews of Bishnoi. The other two members of the SIT are: DIGs S. Rahul and Nilambari Vijay Jagadale.

Bishnoi, one of the accused in the 2022 murder of singer Sidhu Moosewala, recently filed a petition in the Supreme Court against the High Court's order to form the SIT and register FIRs over his interviews with a TV channel while in jail. However, the SC dismissed Bishnoi's plea on July 30. A bench of Justice Bela M Trivedi and Justice S C Sharma said it was not inclined to interfere with the High Court order. "Let it be investigated. It is a matter of investigation. There are 73 cases filed against you," the bench said.

During the SIT investigation, numerous police officers and TV channel officials were summoned and interrogated. The mobile phone used by the news channel to record the interview was recovered from Noida. The investigators carefully examined the raw footage of the interview provided by the TV channel to reach a conclusion. The SIT revealed that the initial interview was carried out by the news channel from its office in the Industrial Area of Chandigarh in the first week of September 2022, utilising the Wi-Fi network of CIA, Kharar under the Mohali Police. Several Anti-Gangster Task Force AGTF officers, CIA staff and other police officials were also questioned by the SIT during the investigation.

It is learnt that the news channel had called its staff on the intervening night of 3-4 September 2022 to prepare for the interview. The recording was done using the virtual meeting platform ZOOM between 1:20 am to 3 am. Sources said ZOOM fully cooperated in the investigation and provided a 65B certificate stating that its platform was used for Bishnoi's interview. The management of ZOOM has assured the SIT that it will depose before the court as a witness if

required.

Sources indicate that with regard to another interview, the SIT had dispatched teams to Rajasthan to search for the mobile SIM card reportedly used for Bishnoi's interview by the same TV channel. Evidence suggests that Bishnoi was interviewed while in Jaipur jail. Further investigation is on.

"The SIT is now working to ascertain the criminal offences made out against Bishnoi and other individuals involved in recording and broadcasting the gangster's interviews," the sources added.
(editor@dailyworld.in)