Mastermind in the killing of famous singer-politician Sidhu Moosewala

Chandigarh/Toronto : The Canadian government on Tuesday named Satinder Singh Brar, nicknamed Goldy Brar, the alleged mastermind in the killing of famous singer-politician Sidhu Moosewala, among the country’s top 25 wanted criminals.

The Punjab-origin affiliate of Lawrence Bishnoi’s gang is wanted by the Royal Canadian Mounted Police for murder, according to the ‘Bolo (Be On the Lookout) Programme’ list issued. The Programme is a Canadian not-for-profit organisation that amplifies police fugitive cases to increase public awareness. Brar’s life-sized cutout among all 25 fugitives has been displayed at Toronto’s Yonge-Dundas Square.

However, there is no reward for Goldy Brar, who features on the 15th number in the list. The 29-year-old, who reached Canada on a student visa in 2017, allegedly claimed responsibility for the murder of Shubhdeep Singh Sidhu, popularly known as Sidhu Moosewala, who was shot dead in Punjab’s Mansa district on May 29, 2022. Goldy Brar has been on the run since then. Brar is the subject of a Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) investigation into the allegations originating from India.

The offences committed in India are very serious in nature and merit the interest of the police in Canada, the Canadian High Commission in New Delhi said in the statement.

“Brar is believed to be in Canada and represents a risk to public safety. He is currently under investigation but is not charged with any criminal offences in Canada,” the statement said. According to Interpol, Brar has been charged with murder, criminal conspiracy, and the supply of illegal firearms in India. A Red Corner notice, which allows the arrest of a fugitive, has already been issued against Brar who belongs to Punjab’s Muktsar.

The Punjab Police have blamed Goldy Brar and gangster Lawrence Bishnoi for the killing of Moosewala. Bishnoi, who continues to remain in jail after his arrest in 2015, has been operating his terror-crime syndicate from prisons in different states, along with Canada-based Goldy Brar, who is also an accused in the killing of ‘Dera Sacha Sauda’ follower Pradeep Kumar at Faridkot (Punjab) in November 2022.

Goldy Brar has been named in the 1,850-page police charge sheet filed in the Mansa court on August 26 last year. Jailed gangsters Bishnoi and Jaggu Bhagwanpuria have also been named in the chargesheet alongside a dozen others. The Special Investigation Team (SIT) led by Anti-Gangster Task Force chief Pramod Ban is probing the killing of Moosewala. Ban has said Bishnoi, the main conspirator, confessed that the execution planning was hatched in August 2021 to avenge the murder of Akali youth leader Middukhera.