Journalist KJ Singh murder case: Punjab police arrest accused from Uttar Pradesh; recover alleged murder weapon

A month after the killing of senior journalist KJ Singh and his mother, Gurcharan Kaur, the Mohali Police on Thursday arrested a man from Uttar Pradesh for involvement in the case, according to media reports. [caption id=“attachment_4074071” align=“alignleft” width=“380”]  File image of KJ Singh. Twitter @AdityaRajKaul[/caption] The Indian Express reported that the police arrested one Gaurav, a resident of Bulandshahr who was slapped by Singh a few weeks before the murder for creating a nuisance near the journalist’s residence. Police intercepted the accused in KJ Singh’s missing green Ford Ikon car and chased him on Sohana road on Wednesday, reported The Hindustan Times. Mohali SSP Kuldeep Singh Chahal told a press conference that the police recovered the kitchen knife used in the crime along with a mobile phone, a wrist watch and a DVR, The Tribune reported. The police were quoted in The Indian Express as saying that the accused entered Singh’s residence by scaling a low-height boundary wall. “He rang the door bell twice and then took cover in the dark. When KJ opened the door, the accused first assaulted him. Since KJ was also a tall and well-built man, a scuffle took place between both. The accused was carrying a knife with which he stabbed KJ Singh multiple times, dragged his body to the bedroom and then slit his throat,” a police officer told the newspaper. After killing KJ’s mother who was also in the house, the accused escaped in the journalist’s car. “Since KJ’s mother was also present in the house at that time, the accused killed her as well. Later, he escaped with KJ’s television – kept it in KJ’s car – and escaped,” the officer added. After Singh and his mother were found murdered at their Phase 3B2 residence in Mohali on 23 September, the Punjab Police had set up a Special Investigative Team (SIT) to probe the murders. Punjab chief minister Amarinder Singh had also directed the police to beef up security in the area. Singh, who started his career in journalism as a sub editor with The Indian Express in 1978, had also served The Times of India and The Tribune. His last job was with The Tribune as chief news editor in 2009. With inputs from agencies