PUNJAB POLICE NAB TWO MEN ARMED BY FOREIGN-BASED KHALISTANI HANDLERS TO CARRY OUT TARGETED KILLINGS

Chandigarh, May 10, 2018: Punjab Police has arrested two men armed and operationalised by foreign-based Khalistani handlers to carry out targeted killings in the state, as part of a nefarious design to radicalise and use youth to create a communal divide to further their separatist Khalistani agenda.

The motorcycle-borne men, identified as Sandeep Singh and Amar Singh, have alleged links with the terror modules busted in connection with the spate of earlier targeted killings in the state. A police spokesperson revealed they were in touch with one Australia-based Gurjant Singh, who has been charged by the NIA in the October 2017 murder case of Ravinder Gosain of the RSS in Ludhiana.

The highly radicalised accused were nabbed from the Faridkot-Kotkapura national highway after their motorcycle collided with a Mahindra Scorpio vehicle and they were found by the police team that reached the spot to be carrying arms. The search of the accused led to the recovery of two pistols (.30 bore) and 40 live rounds, which they revealed to have been provided by foreign based Khalistani handlers.

On questioning, the men disclosed that they had been in touch with the handlers through social media and encrypted VoIP calls, and had been assigned the task of carrying out killings of targets to be assigned by their handlers. They further told the police that they were in regular touch with Gurjant Singh, who had come to notice first for his radicalisation activities over Facebook.

According to a police spokesperson, the members of the terror module that was busted by them on May 29 last year, had formed a sub group called 'Khalistan Zindabad', which was linked to the radical website 'International Sikh Federation', founded by Gurjant.

Gurjant Singh was also subsequently found to be involved in financing the KLF/ISYF terrorist module that carried out eight incidents of targeted attacks/killings in Punjab between January 2016 and October 2017. The linkages of these two arrested youth with other possible module members and Khalistani operatives is being investigated, said the spokesperson.

While Sandeep Singh, s/o Nirmal Singh, age 26 yrs, is a resident of BangiNihal Village, Tehsil Talwandi Sabo, PS Rama Mandi, Distt. Bathinda, 48-year-old Amar Singh, s/o Bakshish Singh, age 48 yrs, is a resident of Village Chattha, PS Sadar-Dabwali, Distt. Sirsa, Haryana

A criminal case FIR No. 73 dated 10.05.2018 u/s 17,18,19,20 UA(P)Act and 25,54,59 Arms Act has been registered at PS City Kotkapura against the accused, said the spokesperson, adding that further investigations were in progress in the case.