By PTI
CHANDIGARH: The Punjab Police on Tuesday made its first arrest in the Sidhu Moose Wala murder case, two days after the Punjabi singer was shot dead in Mansa district.
A police official said Manpreet Singh has been arrested was produced before a court, which sent him to police custody for five days, said an official.
Famous Punjabi singer and Congress leader Moose Wala was shot dead by unidentified assailants on Sunday, a day after the state government pruned his security cover.
Meanwhile, a sea of mourners bid a tearful farewell to popular Punjabi singer Sidhu Moose Wala, who was cremated at his native village in Mansa district on Tuesday afternoon.
The body of the 28-year-old singer-politician was brought to his home in Moosa village amid tight security on Tuesday morning from Mansa civil hospital, where the post-mortem was conducted.
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Moose Wala’s family, including his parents, were inconsolable as they sat beside the body at their home.
His mother was seen trying to console her husband as people from Punjab, Haryana, Rajasthan and Chandigarh among other places queued up in large numbers to get a last glimpse of the singer.
Moose Wala was dressed as a groom.
It is a ritual which is followed in the state when a young unmarried man dies.
The mother of Moose Wala combed his hair while his father tied a red colour turban along with a ‘sehra’ on his head.
The singer’s favourite tractor, which had figured in many of his music videos, was bedecked with flowers for his last ride to a family-owned field for the cremation.
Notwithstanding the scorching heat, mourners joined the funeral procession as Moose Wala’s father and mother stood on the tractor trolley with folded hands, accompanying their son on his final journey.
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The singer’s father, Balkour Singh, even took off his turban and held it out in his hands to express his gratitude on seeing the sea of mourners.
Some of his fans wore t-shirts with Moose Wala’s picture printed on them.
Punjab Congress chief Amrinder Singh Raja Warring was present during the funeral procession.
Earlier, Congress leader Sukhjinder Randhawa, BJP leaders including state unit chief Ashwani Sharma, Subhash Sharma and Rana Gurmit Singh Sodhi met the family of Moose Wala to condole the death.
A heavy police force was deployed at the slain singer’s residence as well as at the cremation site.
People heaped praises on Moose Wala and even raised slogans in his favour.
“He was a good-natured man. He would never say no to anybody for a selfie. We are sad that he is not amongst us today,” said a villager.
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Some villagers and fans expressed anger over the Punjab police pruning Moose Wala’s security cover just a day before he was shot dead and sought the strictest punishment for the killers.
“Those who were behind the killing of Moose Wala should be given exemplary punishment,” said an elderly man who came from Jalandhar.
Shubhdeep Singh Sidhu, known as Sidhu Moose Wala, was shot dead on Sunday by unidentified assailants in Punjab’s Mansa district.
His cousin and a friend, who were travelling in a Mahindra Thar jeep with him, were also injured in the attack.
The popular Punjabi singer had fought the recent assembly election in Punjab on a Congress ticket from Mansa and was defeated by the AAP’s Vijay Singla.
He was among the 424 people whose security was withdrawn or curtailed by the Punjab Police on Saturday on a temporary basis.
Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann on Monday announced setting up a judicial commission headed by a sitting high court judge to probe the brutal killing of Sidhu Moose Wala.
The state police on Monday claimed to have rounded up some suspects and got important leads in connection with the killing.
It had termed the assassination a case of an inter-gang rivalry and that the Lawrence Bishnoi gang was behind the killing.
