Chandigarh, Jul 26 (IANS): Punjab Police's Anti-Gangster Task Force (AGTF) in a joint operation with the Bathinda Police have arrested two close associates of gangsters Goldy Brar and Anmol Bishnoi when they were attempting to escape to Haryana, said Director General of Police (DGP) Gaurav Yadav on Tuesday.

Those arrested have been identified as Malkit Singh, alias Kitta, of Bhaini village in Bathinda and Hardeep Singh, alias Mamma, of Aaklia Jalal village in Bathinda.

Both the accused persons are history-sheeters and wanted by the police in several cases of heinous crimes.

The police have also recovered seven pistols (six .32 bores and one .30 bore) along with ammunition and a police Uniform of an ASI rank from their possession, besides impounding their motorcycle using which they were trying to escape.

The development came just a few days after the AGTF had neutralised two killers of Punjabi Singer Sidhu Moosewala during an encounter in the Bhakna village of Amritsar.

Goldy Brar is currently residing in Canada and is a mastermind of the murder of Moosewala.

DGP Yadav said following an input about the two associates of Goldy Brar carrying a large number of weapons trying to escape the state on a motorcycle, the AGTF nabbed them.

Preliminary investigations revealed that the arrested accused persons, on directions of Goldy Brar, had unsuccessfully attempted to murder a Rajasthan-based gangster Kailash Manju in Jaisalmer when he was out on bail, he said.

The DGP said the arrested persons had also tried to kill three associates -- Dagar, Fateh Nagar, and Kaunsal Chaudhary -- of Gangster Sukha Duneke when the police had brought them on production warrant in connection with kabbadi player Sandeep Nangal Ambia murder case.

Not ruling out the connection of these two arrested persons in the Moosewala murder case, the DGP said the police are investigating from that angle also.