Ten days after three unidentified assailants opened fire at the residence of Punjabi singer-actor Gulab Sidhu in Pharwahi village on the outskirts of Barnala, the police on Tuesday claimed to have busted the gang allegedly involved in the incident.The breakthrough came during a joint operation by the Barnala and Sangrur district police and the Counter Intelligence unit, Patiala, following a brief exchange of fire on the Barnala-Mansa road on Tuesday morning.So far, nine accused, including two alleged shooters, all youngsters and residents of Sangrur district, have been arrested. The police said three pistols with magazines, 10 live cartridges, five empty shells, a car and two motorcycles without registration number plates had been recovered.Three motorcycle-borne assailants had opened fire at the main gate of the singer’s residence during the intervening night of September 12 and 13. Gangster Doni Bal subsequently claimed responsibility for the attack through two purported audio clips circulated on social media, alleging that Gulab Sidhu had been attending weddings of friends of those responsible for the killing of singer Shubhdeep Singh, aka Sidhu Moosewala. He had allegedly threatened the singer with further action.Patiala Range DIG Kuldeep Singh Chahal said an FIR had been registered at the Barnala Sadar police station under Sections 109, 61(2), 191(3) and 190 of the BNS and relevant sections of the Arms Act.Four of them, Gurwinder Singh alias Shaktiman alias Jattvibeny Deol, Gurpreet Singh alias Baba, Ramanpreet Singh and Gaurav Sharma alias Krishan Kumar, were arrested from different locations on Monday. A car, a .30-bore pistol with two live cartridges and a motorcycle without bearing registration number were recovered from them, he said.On Tuesday morning, police teams searching for the remaining accused spotted two motorcycle-borne men near Pakho Kalan village. The suspects allegedly tried to flee and opened fire at the police party, which had laid a naka based on specific information, the DIG said.He said the police team retaliated in self-defence, during which one suspect sustained a gunshot injury to his right leg, while the other suffered a fracture after the motorcycle skidded.Both were apprehended and admitted to the Civil Hospital, Barnala. They were identified as Gurwinder Singh alias Luddar, allegedly one of the main shooters, and Gurpiar Singh alias Guri. Gurwinder has five cases registered against him, the police said.It added two 9-mm Zigana pistols, eight live cartridges, five empty cartridges and the motorcycle allegedly used in the crime were recovered. A separate case was registered at the Rureke Kalan police station.A few hours later, another shooter involved in the incident, Kali, was arrested, said Barnala SSP Mohammad Sarfaraz Alam.Meanwhile, the CIA Staff, Sangrur, arrested Amritpal Singh alias Ambri and Jattvibeny, who allegedly conducted reconnaissance of Gulab Sidhu’s residence. A country-made .32-bore pistol and five cartridges were recovered from Amritpal Singh, the police claimed.The DIG said the preliminary investigation had revealed that the accused were allegedly in contact with criminal elements based abroad and were planning another crime. He said the police were investigating the possibility that the firing was linked to an extortion attempt and that further details would emerge as the investigation progressed.