From crime to politics via social service, Sekhon gears for 2027 assembly polls

Bathinda: From the world of crime to politics, Gurpreet Singh Sekhon is the latest entrant in the politics of Punjab. After getting his two family members to win the zila parishad election from Bajidpur and Ferozeshah zones in Ferozepur, he announced he would contest the next assembly elections from Ferozepur district and started preparing to jump into the electoral arena.

In between, facing a sentence for his criminal acts and entering the political arena, Sekhon tried to feel the pulse of the people through social service. He stood by the aggrieved persons during the floods in August-September 2025.


In the world of crime, 38-year-old Gurpreet Singh faced over 40 criminal cases, with the most heinous being the sensational Nabha Jail Break in November 2016 and the killing of gangster Sukha Kahlwan. He faced a 10-year sentence in the Nabha jail break case and was acquitted in almost all the cases, including the Sukha Kahlwan murder case.

Sekhon's criminal career spanned over a decade, as he faced the first case in 2012 and came out of jail on November 22, 2023. He was considered a member of the Shera Khubban and Vicky Gounder group. Before entering the world of crime, Sekhon ran a brick kiln and marriage palace, which he ran even after coming out of it.

Now in public life for over a year, his social work, especially during the floods, and his connection with the people helped him secure victory in the Zila Parishad elections and made him announce that he would contest the next assembly elections.

"Even though he is considered close to Shiromani Akali Dal, I will take any decision as per the wishes of my supporters, and if they ask me to contest as an independent, I will obey them," said Sekhon, speaking to TOI.

Open to discussing his criminal past in depth, Gurpreet Sekhon said, "Those who still call me gangster and put a question mark on my credentials should first make it clear what their contribution is to the betterment of society. I completely reformed myself and now I am devoted to the welfare of the people, which I showcased during the recent floods my area faced, and, going by the closeness I developed with the people, I decided to contest the next assembly elections." He said the years he spent reciting ‘Gurbani' in prison transformed him, and he got the willpower to serve the people.

Even as he is active in the Zira assembly constituency, Sekhon, for now, did not want to be declared as a candidate from Zira and said to wait, as there was still a lot of time before the elections.

Political experts feel parallels between him and slain gangster-turned social activist Jaswinder Singh Rocky, who contested the 2012 assembly elections from Fazilka in 2012 and lost by a small margin of 1,692 votes to Surjit Kumar Jyani of BJP. Like Sekhon, Rocky faced many cases before turning towards social service and finally into politics. He was killed at Parwanoo in Himachal Pradesh on April 30, 2016, when he was preparing to contest the 2017 assembly elections.

Before Rocky, another social activist with a criminal past, Lakha Sidhana, contested the 2012 assembly election as a Peoples Party of Punjab candidate from Rampura Phool. MSID:: 128115547 413 |