A 33-year-old man from Sandhu Patti area in ward number 6 in Barnala town was allegedly shot dead in Manila, Philippines, by three motorcycle-borne assailants.The deceased has been identified as Manpreet Singh, aka Mani. He was married about three years ago. His wife was staying here with her in-laws and was planning to go to Manila this month.According to information received by the family, the assailants fired six bullets at Manpreet while he was on his way to work. Two of the accused are reportedly Punjabis. One of the suspects has been arrested by the Manila police. The motive behind the murder is yet to be ascertained.Manpreet had gone to Manila in 2017 for greener pastures. He had come here during Diwali last year to attend a family wedding.“A friend of Mani broke the tragic news over the phone on Sunday. We have been told that he was killed over some personal enmity,” said his mother Paramjeet Kaur, as tears rolled down her cheeks. His father Hardev Singh, a daily-wage labourer, demanded strict legal action against the killers.The victim’s grandmother, Joginder Kaur, who works as a Class IV employee in a school, and his wife, Veerpal Kaur, appealed to the Centre and the state governments to help in bringing the body back to Barnala so that the last rites could be performed here. Manpreet is survived by his parents, grandmother, wife and a younger brother.
