National level shooter Sippy Sidhu shot dead in Chandigarh

Sippy was a stalwart of the National shooting circuit

National level shooter Sukhmanpreet Singh Sidhu, better known as Sippy was shot dead within the premises of a sector 27 park in Chandigarh. The grandson of former Haryana and Punjab High court judge, SS Sidhu, Sippy was a stalwart in the national shooting circuit, having won the team gold at the 2001 National Games for Punjab, along with Olympic gold medallist Abhinav Bindra.

The Chandigarh Police suspect personal differences as the cause for the murder and have begun their probe. Senior Superintendent of the Chandigarh Police Sukchain Singh Gill, said that they are looking at various angles, but there is a chance, that this could be the prime reason.

The 34-year old’s body was recovered last night at around 11 pm, after police received a call alerting them about an unconscious man, who was bleeding profusely. He was taken to the Government Multi-Speciality hospital, located on Sector 16. On arrival, the doctors declared him dead.

Sippy came from a relatively affluent family and was part of the law firm, “Sippy and Sidhu. He was also a sports promoter, who organised events across the city.

National Rifle Association of India (NRAI) President Rajiv Bhatia said, “Me and the entire shooting fraternity is shocked, he was a young shooter with a lot ot potential. It has come as a major shock to us.”

According to the Chandigarh Police, they are currently analysing phone calls and text message to figure out, who the victim was close too. However, they have almost narrowed down the motive to pesonal enimity. Officials also stated, that Sippy’s Chevrolet Optra was parked 100m away from the park, where they found his mobile and wallet.

Forensics officials, who visited the site, stated that two different weapons were used for the murder. They added that since the killers, didn’t leave any shells behind, indicated that they were professional killers.

The gunshots were fired from close range directed towards the shoulder, chest and face. Police is quite certain that it was a contract killing as they did not leave any clues behind. Sippy’s family members stated that he left home at around 9 p.m to meet his friends. They also stated that there was a massive property dispute between him and a Delhi-based businessman. Police are currently probing that angle.

Sidhu was also the Joint-Secretary of the suspened Paralympic Committee of India and also the founding member of the Paralympic Committee of Punjab.