'Military deserter' hoodwinks police in Punjab hospital, escapes custody

A "military deserter" accused of stealing weapons from an Army institute escaped from police custody early on Tuesday by scaling the wall of a hospital in Punjab's Hoshiarpur where he was undergoing treatment for an injury, officials said. Five policemen, including two assistant sub-inspectors (ASI) have been suspended for dereliction of duty, they said.

The accused, Harpreet Singh (25), had been undergoing treatment at the Hoshiarpur civil hospital for a hand injury since December 31, the police said. "He hoodwinked our policemen by making an excuse of going to the washroom," Hoshiarpur Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) Gaurav Garg told PTI over phone, asserting that he will be caught soon.

"We have substantial leads and we are working on them," he said. At least four policemen were guarding Singh at the hospital. He tricked them and escaped by climbing the wall of the hospital at around 4:30 am, the officials said, adding that he was lodged at a jail in Punjab's Hoshiarpur district.

Five policemen, including two ASIs, have been suspended for dereliction of duty, SSP Garg said. A case had also been registered in the matter, he said.

Singh is facing charges for stealing two INSAS rifles and ammunition from the Army's training institute in Madhya Pradesh's Pachmarhi, the police said. He was a sepoy in the Indian Army and was arrested from Chotala village near Tanda in Hoshiarpur in December last year. He was declared a "military deserter" in October that year, they said.

His three accomplices were also arrested at that time. Posing as Army officers, the accused had stolen the weapons and ammunition in the early hours of December 6 last year, they added. The stolen arms and ammunition have been recovered, the police said.

Singh is facing charges under sections 380 (theft), 399 (making preparation to commit dacoity) and 411 (dishonestly receiving stolen property) of the Indian Penal Code and the Arms Act, the police had then said.