Chandigarh, Dec 28 : The chief of Punjab Police went on the defensive in connection with the Patiala gang-rape incident after the high court served a notice on his force on Friday, and admitted that the incident has been handled unprofessionally.

Punjab Director General of Police (DGP) Sumedh Singh Saini said that all essential action would be taken against those guilty in the case.

"We have registered a criminal case against the erring Sub-Inspector and other Policemen who were involved in the case," he said.

Saini further stated that a departmental inquiry has also begun to reveal the truth related to the matter.

Meanwhile, the Punjab Government has announced a three-member panel to probe the Patiala gang-rape case. The team, which would be headed by ADG (Crime), would look into aspect of dereliction of duty by an officer in this case.

The incident has left the Punjab Police shamed as it comes close on the heels of an assistant sub-inspector being gunned down in broad daylight by a SAD leader in Amritsar when he tried to save his daughter from being harassed earlier this month.

Taking suo motu cognizance on the rape case where a minor girl had ended her life after the cops failed to take action against those responsible for the heinous crime, the Punjab and Haryana High Court earlier in the day directed the Inspector General of Police (IGP), Patiala range, to submit a status report.

Patiala Police, which has been asked to submit its report by January 8, 2013, has been told to reveal what actions have been taken against those responsible for the teen''s trauma.

A 17-year-old gang-rape victim in Patiala has committed suicide because the police allegedly embarrassed her and refused to register a case for over a month.

The girl, who drank poison to kill herself, was found dead at her home on Wednesday night.

According to reports, the police officer running the station where she tried to get her case filed has been pulled up for dereliction of duty. Meanwhile, two more police officials have been dismissed and another suspended.

Her two alleged rapists were arrested on Thursday along with another woman accused of serving as an accomplice.

The Punjab Government has ordered the state''s Inspector General of Police to conduct an inquiry and submit a report within a week.

The minor was sexually assaulted on Diwali by two men, and despite the fact that she went on camera to narrate her ordeal over a month back, no arrests were made.

The victim''s family decided to file a police case two weeks after the attack despite threats from the rapists and their associates.

According to reports, the girl''s family has alleged that the cops refused to register a case and that they summoned the teen repeatedly to the police station and humiliated her. (ANI)