Dismissed DSP Gursher Singh Sandhu face a vigilance bureau case, for possessing assets from unknown income source, linked to the controversial Lawrence Bishnoi jail interview. Investigation revealed, DSP spent 10 times of his official income over three years.
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PUNJAB: On 24 June, Supreme Court dismissed a withdraw petition filed by the former DSP of Punjab, Gursher Singh Sandhu. He has approached the apex court regarding the interview of a gangster, Lawrence Bishnoi in the jail.
The question is, how the interview is held in the jail and how the DSP spent 10 times of his official income across three years.
ALSO READ: Charges Filed Against Lawrence Bishnoi and 26 Others| Sidhu Moosewala Murder Case
Charges Against Lawrence Bishnoi
Lawrence Bishnoi, a notorious figure in India’s organized crime landscape, faces a wide range of serious criminal charges. He is accused in multiple cases involving extortion, murder, criminal intimidation, arms smuggling, and organized violence.
The FIR listed seven charges, including Sections 384 (extortion), 201 (destruction of evidence), 202 (intentional concealment of information about an offence), 506 (criminal intimidation), 116 (abetment of offences punishable by imprisonment), and 120-B (criminal conspiracy) of the Indian Penal Code, along with Section 52-A(1) of the Prisons (Punjab Amendment) Act, 2011.
One of the most high-profile charges against him includes his alleged role in the murder of Punjabi singer Sidhu Moose Wala, which drew nationwide attention. In addition to this, Bishnoi has been linked to several cases of extortion rackets targeting celebrities, businessmen, and real estate developers.
He has been arrested multiple times, and remains in custody while facing trial for the ongoing cases against him as he is involved in countless legal charges including murder, extortion and conspiracy.
Bishnoi Interview Row
On March 2023, a private news channel broadcast two interviews with gangster Lawrence Bishnoi, recorded while he was in custody, first at the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) office in Kharar, and later from a jail in Rajasthan.
The televised interviews sparked a major uproar over how he gained access to mobile phones, Wi‑Fi, and even studio-like facilities inside the jail.
In December 2023, the Punjab & Haryana High Court initiated suo motu proceedings and ordered the registration of an FIR. A Special Investigation Team (SIT) led by IPS Prabodh Kumar was formed to probe the security breaches
The SIT report on 9 October 2024 concluded that the Anti‑Gangster Task Force had “unbridled and undocumented access” to Bishnoi, highlighting major protocol failures. Seven officers, including DSP Sandhu, were suspended or dismissed.
Case Against DSP
The Punjab Vigilance Bureau has filed a case against dismissed DSP Gursher Singh Sandhu and his mother, Sukhwant Kaur, for allegedly amassing assets disproportionate to their known sources of income.
Sandhu officially earned just ₹26 lakh, but is accused of spending over ₹2.6 crore, nearly 10 times his legitimate income across three years.
Apart from the assets case, DSP Sandhu is also being probed for his alleged involvement in land fraud and extortion. According to reports:
- He used proxies to purchase disputed lands at undervalued prices.
- He then intimidated genuine landowners using false complaints and forged documents.
- These lands were later sold at inflated prices, allowing him to generate large sums of unaccounted wealth.
- Sandhu is also believed to have formed shell companies and used third-party bank accounts to launder illicit proceeds.
The SIT found that Sandhu, serving as DSP (Investigation) in Mohali and covering the CIA office in Kharar, facilitated a televised interview of gangster Lawrence Bishnoi from jail custody in September 2022. Punjab Government dismissed him in Jan 2025 under Article 311.
Sandhu is currently the subject of FIR notices under Section 41A CrPC for his involvement. His appeal was reviewed by the Supreme Court, where he withdrew his plea on June 24, 2025, and redirected to the Punjab & Haryana High Court.
The High Court, on June 7, 2025, demanded sealed reports on jail security lapses and summoned the police to identify who authorized the interviews. The matter is listed for hearing on July 3, 2025.
Case Title:
Gursher Singh Sandhu v. State of Punjab & Anr.
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