Hoshiarpur, Jul 9 (PTI) A day after the police arrested three men following an encounter here, it was revealed that they were part of an extortion gang operated from abroad, the police said on Sunday.

During the encounter on Saturday at Bhilowal village, about 15 km from Hoshiarpur, two accused received bullet wounds, while one was nabbed unhurt.

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The arrested trio -- Manraj Raj, Navjot Singh and Ravinder Singh -- worked for an extortion and robbery gang operated by kingpin Balwinder Singh alias Binder from abroad, Swapan Sharma, Deputy Inspector General of Police, Jalandhar Range, told reporters on Sunday.

Balwinder Singh, who was wanted in 18 cases in India, allegedly went abroad through illegal means and started an extortion racket with the help of his accomplices here, Sharma said.

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On the day of the incident, police laid a trap following a tip-off that the trio would be coming to a house in Bhilowal with the intention to harm a person, the police said.

As police lay in their wait, the three men came there in a car and reached the verandah of the house. Police asked them to stop but they opened fire at them, they said.

In the retaliatory firing, Manraj Raj, 26 of Chabbewal and Navjot Singh, 24, of Jian village received bullet wounds. The third man, Ravinder Singh, also from Jian village, was arrested unhurt, they added.

Manraj Raj and Navjot Singh were admitted to a local government hospital, the police said.

A case under relevant sections of the Indian Penal Code and sections of the Arms Act was registered against them at the Chabbewal police station, the DIG said.

During preliminary interrogation, the accused said they carried out extortion on the instructions of Balwinder Singh, he said.

Earlier, five criminal cases had been registered against Navjot Singh and two cases against Manraj Raj, the DIG added.

(The above story is verified and authored by Press Trust of India (PTI) staff. PTI, India’s premier news agency, employs more than 400 journalists and 500 stringers to cover almost every district and small town in India.. The views appearing in the above post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY)