‘This is a hate crime’: Bike-borne men open fire at migrant workers in Punjab’s Moga, 2 injured

Meanwhile, one Nirvair Singh, in a social media post, claimed the responsibility for the incident. The post suggested he was from Devinder Bambiha gang, said police. A video of the incident was also posted from the said account. In the video, a group of workers are seen walking when a man opens fire targeting their legs. The video seems to have been captured by one of the persons on the motorbike.

The accompanying post reads: “The firing that took place on the bhaiyas (a slang for people from UP–Bihar) in Khosa Jalal village was carried out by us — Ladi Bhalwan and Nirvair Singh”.

In a first such crime, assailants brazenly open fire at migrants in Moga. An Instagram post purportedly by Devinder Bambiha group claims responsibility stating that “bhaiyyas from UP – Bihar are spoiling the atmosphere of Punjab”. One injured, says SSP @iepunjab @IndianExpress pic.twitter.com/RYbyAV676K

— Divya Goyal (@divya5521) February 10, 2026

The post said the firing was carried out to “protest” against the migrants who “spoil the atmosphere” of Punjab.

The post alleges that no strict action was taken against migrants despite the way they treated Punjab’s youth. “Neither were the families of those who committed rape against children picked up, nor was heavy compensation taken from the families of those who stabbed and killed innocent children. We want to make it clear that the responsibility lies with those sarpanches and panchayat members of Punjab who, for the sake of votes, got Aadhaar cards made for these people and allowed them to stay. If in the coming time these people are not driven out from any village or city…then we will prepare a list of power-hungry sarpanches, panchayat members, and municipal councillors (MCs) and take action against them,” it warns.

It further warns that they have a list of drug smugglers from the Malwa belt and action will be taken against “whether you are an ordinary person or even our own associates from the Bambiha group.”

Asked about the social media post, SSP Gandhi said: “It is being verified. We are investigating the case from all angles. An FIR is the case is being registered at Moga Sadar police station and the statement of the victim is being recorded. He is a local factory worker”.

Subodh Kumar, one of the workers who received minor injury, told local media that he works at a local rice sheller and had come to Moga only two months ago. “We were on the way to have lunch when three men on a bike opened fire at us. We don’t know who those people were. One of them was driving the bike and two others had guns in their hands. My cousin, Ashok, received a bullet injury in the leg. We don’t have any enmity with anyone”.

Inspector Harwinder Singh, SHO Moga Sadar police station, said Ashok was referred to Guru Gobind Singh Medical College and Hospital, Faridkot. “His condition is stable and his statement awaited to register an FIR,” said the SHO.

CCTV footage from nearby areas is being examined to track the movement of the attackers, police said.

Subodh, one of the injured migrantsRam Kuma Yadav, president, Yadav Ahir Mahasabha, an NGO working for welfare of migrants in Punjab, said: “This is a hate crime. Never before in Punjab, migrants have been targeted this way. Migrants from UP and Bihar are the backbone of industry and agriculture in Punjab. If they leave Punjab, farmers and industrialists will suffer the most. These communities have always respected the migrant workers and provided them food and shelter not just salaries. This is a design to create disharmony in Punjab and vitiate the congenial environment in which migrants work. Only gangsters can spread this hate against migrants, not the real Punjabis who have always provided us with job opportunities. I am living in Ludhiana since 30 years but never before a migrant has been fired upon due to hate.”

In September last year, following the sexual assault and murder of a five-year-old boy in Hoshiarpur allegedly by a migrant worker who was later arrested, there was a widespread anger and outrage against “parvaasis” in Punjab following which several village panchayats had also passed resolutions “banning” their entry into villages, and ordering migrants “without documents to leave immediately.”