KHALISTAN EXTREMISM MONITOR
A project of the Institute for Conflict Management
A project of the Institute for Conflict Management
24-May-2024
France-based Non-Resident Indian (NRI) Iqbal Singh Bhatti visited Delhi Lieutenant Governor (L-G) VK Saxena on May 24 to deny involvement in Khalistani funding for Aam Aadmi Party (AAP). Bhatti, a social worker who runs Aurore Dawn in France, asserted that he had no connection to the funding allegations and provided documents supporting his claims. He mentioned his history of social service, including organizing a rally for Prime Minister (PM) Modi in Paris. Previously, Bhatti had received a letter from AAP leader Arvind Kejriwal in 2014 regarding the 1984 anti-Sikh riots and the release of Sikhs imprisoned for decades.
24-May-2024
Prime Minister (PM) Narendra Modi, while addressing a rally in Gurdaspur district on May 24, criticized the Congress over the 1984 anti-Sikh riots, accusing it of allowing the "massacre of Sikhs" and protecting the rioters, while he ensured that the guilty were punished. He further criticized the Congress and the Indian National Developmental Inclusive Alliance (INDIA) bloc, claiming they instigated separatism and sheltered rioters, thus disturbing communal harmony in Punjab.
23-May-2024
Prime Minister (PM) Narendra Modi, while addressing a rally in Patiala district on May 23, commented on Pakistan’s Kartarpur Sahib, suggesting that if he had been in power during the 1971 Bangladesh war, he would have negotiated its transfer from Pakistan in exchange for returning Pakistani soldiers. The Kartarpur corridor, opened in 2019, allows visa-free access for Indian Sikh pilgrims to visit the Gurdwara Darbar Sahib Kartarpur in Pakistan.
23-May-2024
Ahead of Prime Minister (PM) Narendra Modi's visit to Patiala on May 23, several farmer organizations have announced protests, including road blockades and sit-ins in Patiala district. The Samyukt Kisan Morcha (SKM) (Non-Political) and other SKM factions plan to march with black flags and block entry points to Patiala, while the Bharti Kisan Union (BKU) (Ekta-Ugrahan) plans to protest outside the Deputy Commissioner’s office. The police have set up barricades to control the movement of protesters.
23-May-2024
Former chief minister and Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) candidate from Karnal Lok Sabha, Manohar Lal Khattar, on May 23, while addressing the media in Karnal district, Haryana, criticized farmers' protestors against his government, claiming they are neither true Sikhs nor farmers, and condemned their actions during protests. Reacting to his remarks, the spokesperson of the Bharatiya Kisan Union (Sir Chotu Ram), Bahadur Mehla, defended their right to protest and criticized the government's unfulfilled promises and past actions against farmers.
23-May-2024
Prime Minister (PM) Narendra Modi, while addressing an election rally in Patiala district on May 23, accused the Congress and the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) of being two sides of the same coin and responsible for rampant corruption and the flourishing drug industry in Punjab. He claimed that the state is dominated by resource mafia, drug mafia, and shooter gangs, and has become debt-ridden under their rule.
23-May-2024
Minutes before he was shot near Wadala Chowk in Jalandhar on May 12, drug lord Gurpreet Gopa received a call from the United States (US), according to his family. Gopa, wanted in connection with a 2019 heroin smuggling case involving 532 kilograms of heroin, had been hiding in and around Jalandhar for months, living under a false identity. Despite being a prime suspect in the smuggling case, he managed to evade arrest until his murder, which remains unsolved as of yet.
23-May-2024
Uttar Pradesh (UP) Police on May 23 arrested 12 members of a gang allegedly linked to those who supplied firearms to the killers of Punjabi singer Sidhu Moose Wala and seized seven country-made .32 bore pistols and 10 cartridges, as well as five country-made .315 bore firearms and five cartridges from their possession in Bulandshahr district in UP. The arrested accused revealed their involvement in purchasing firearms from Bilal and Rizwan of Khurja, Bulandshahr, and supplying them to criminal gangs in Delhi, NCR, Punjab, and Haryana. Efforts are underway to apprehend Bilal and Rizwan, who are also being investigated by the National Investigation Agency (NIA) for their alleged role in supplying firearms to Moose Wala's killers.
23-May-2024
Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) national spokesperson Jaiveer Shergill, on May 23 in Jalandhar, countered allegations that Amritpal Singh, detained under the National Security Act (NSA) and contesting elections as an independent candidate from Khadoor Sahib, is a BJP prodigy. Shergill emphasized that neither the BJP nor Prime Minister (PM) Narendra Modi have a history of supporting anti-social elements, highlighting their efforts to reduce terror in Kashmir and the North East. He expressed confidence that PM Modi's visit to Punjab would positively impact the BJP's prospects in the upcoming elections, asserting that the BJP's dominance will significantly increase in Punjab.
22-May-2024
Balkaur Singh, father of singer Sidhu Moose Wala, expressed his sole campaign cause as seeking "justice" for his slain son during an interview with The Tribune while campaigning in Shahkot, Jalandhar district. Throughout his speeches, he emphasized his son's case and lamented the government's inaction in bringing the perpetrators to justice. Despite his lack of oratory skills, he stands on stage out of helplessness, urging support for the Congress candidate Charanjit Singh Channi, citing the deteriorating law and order situation and the prevalence of gangsters.
22-May-2024
On May 22, a day before Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s rally, pro-Khalistan graffiti was found sprayed on the wall of the old Patiala bus stand flyover in Patiala district despite heavy police deployment. The slogans "Khalistan Zindabad" and "SFJ" were discovered in the morning and promptly painted over by police. Authorities are investigating the incident and reviewing CCTV footage to identify the vandals.
22-May-2024
According to District Electoral Officer (DEO) Aashika Jain, on May 22, the district administration in Mohali, Sahibzada Ajit Singh (SAS) Nagar district, reported the seizure of drugs, cash, and other valuables worth INR 10 crore since the enforcement of the model code of conduct.
22-May-2024
Candidates from all four main political parties contesting the Gurdaspur parliamentary seat recently expressed a unified stance on eradicating the drone menace, despite ideological differences. Pakistani actors frequently use drones to smuggle high-purity heroin into border villages in Gurdaspur, severely impacting local youth. Congress candidate Sukhjinder Singh Randhawa, Aam Aadmi Party’s (AAP) Sherry Kalsi, Bharatiya Janata Party’s (BJP) Dinesh Singh Babbu, and Shiromani Akali Dal’s (SAD) Daljit Singh Cheema all emphasized the urgent need to develop and deploy effective anti-drone systems to combat this issue.
22-May-2024
Border Security Force (BSF) troops on May 22 recovered one packet of heroin weighing 530 grams from a farming field near Ratankhurd village in Ajnala in Amritsar district.
21-May-2024
Recently, images have surfaced showing leaders of the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) with Babbar Khalsa International (BKI) terrorists, linked to a funding deal in Canada. Sources revealed that Punjab Assembly Speaker Kultar Singh Sandhwan met BKI leaders and secured over USD 5 million for AAP in exchange for leniency towards Khalistan activists during a meeting held in September 2022 in Montreal, Canada. Sources also disclosed that Punjab Chief Minister (CM) Bhagwant Mann and Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal addressed BKI leaders over the phone during the meeting. CNN-News18 reported this deal, as well as previous claims by Khalistani terrorist and chief of the Khalistani terror outfit Sikhs for Justice (SFJ), Gurpatwant Singh Pannun, that AAP received USD 16 million from Khalistani groups for election funding between 2014 and 2022. The National Investigation Agency (NIA) is expected to investigate these allegations soon.
21-May-2024
Khalistani terrorist and chief of the Khalistani outfit Sikhs For Justice (SFJ), Gurpatwant Singh Pannun, issued threats via a video to Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) Lok Sabha election candidates Ravneet Bittu and Hans Raj Hans over their remarks on the farmers' protests, warning of violent retaliation. He invoked Bittu's grandfather, former Chief Minister (CM) Beant Singh, emphasizing that in Punjab, "murder is avenged by murder." Pannun's message was clear: if even one farmer is murdered, the revenge will be murder.
21-May-2024
The National Investigation Agency (NIA) has initiated an investigation into allegations that the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) led by Arvind Kejriwal received political funding from the banned Khalistani outfit Sikhs For Justice (SFJ), following a recommendation by Delhi Lieutenant Governor Vinai Kumar Saxena. An Enforcement Directorate (ED) note from October 2022 to the Union Ministry of Home Affairs (UMHA) also pointed out AAP's alleged violations of foreign funding laws, mentioning USD 16 million in donations associated with efforts to secure the release of 1993 Delhi bomb blast convict Devinder Pal Singh Bhullar.
21-May-2024
The Border Security Force (BSF), in a joint search operation with the Punjab Police on May 21, raided the house of drug smuggler Jaswinder Singh Kaka and seized 3.124 kg of heroin, two electronic weighing scales, INR 3 lakh in cash, one .30 calibre pistol, six magazines, and 108 rounds of 9 mm calibre, along with 3 rounds of .30 calibre, in Rajoke village in Tarn Taran district
21-May-2024
The State Special Operation Cell (SSOC) in Mohali on May 21 busted an inter-state illegal firearm smuggling ring, apprehending two gangsters identified as Amritpal Singh alias Amrit and Sukhwant Singh along with six .32 bore pistols and four live rounds at Rajpura bus stand in Rajpura, Patiala district. Further investigation revealed the duo's acquisition of these weapons from a trafficker based in Madhya Pradesh (MP) for INR 80,000.
21-May-2024
Punjab’s former Director General of Police (DGP), Viresh Kumar Bhawra, on May 21 filed a petition in the Punjab and Haryana High Court (HC) alleging pressure to engage in illegal activities, including the registration of cases against public figures. He claimed coercion to relinquish his post after the current government assumed power in March 2022, challenging his removal as DGP under the guise of a transfer, which he argues violates Supreme Court precedent. Bhawra's petition, represented by senior advocate DS Patwalia, also names the incumbent DGP Gaurav Yadav among the respondents. The case is scheduled for further hearing on July 4.
20-May-2024
Delhi’s Rouse Avenue Court on May 20 scheduled the 1984 Pul Bangash Sikh killings case for clarification on May 30 after hearing arguments on framing charges. The case involves the alleged killing of three Sikhs by a mob incited by Congress leader Jagdish Tytler, according to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI). Tytler's lawyer questioned the credibility of the new eyewitnesses, while the CBI emphasized that there is sufficient evidence to frame charges.
20-May-2024
Khalistani terrorist and chief of the banned Khalistani outfit Sikhs For Justice (SFJ), Gurpatwant Singh Pannun, incited Punjab's farmers against Prime Minister Narendra Modi via a video, offering USD 100,000 to stop his convoy in Punjab. Pannun urged farmers of Punjab to block roads and airport routes and emphasized Punjab's desire for independence from India. Pannun said “Narendra Modi should not be allowed to speak here… He needs to be made aware that this is Punjab, which wants independence from India… The enemy is coming into the house, there will be an answer in the house”. PM Modi is scheduled to campaign for the Lok Sabha election in the Patiala, Gurdaspur, and Jalandhar districts of Punjab on May 23-24.
20-May-2024
The special court of the National Investigation Agency (NIA) in Mohali recently framed charges against ten people under the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act, the Unlawful Activities Prevention Act (UAPA), the Arms Act and the Indian Penal Code (IPC), in Mohali in Sahibzada Ajit Singh (SAS) Nagar district in Punjab. The case originated from the April 2020 arrest of Hilal Ahmed and the seizure of funds linked to narcotics intended for terrorist activities.
20-May-2024
The State Special Operation Cell (SSOC) on May 20 busted a gang reportedly involved in making fake passports and documents for hardcore criminals in Punjab to help them flee abroad by arresting three men identified as Jagjeet Singh alias Jeeta alias Sonu, Mohammad Shazeb Abid alias Shazeb alias Sajid, and Mohammad Kaif, from Urban Estate Phase 1 in Jalandhar in Jalandhar district. The Police arrested Jagjeet first, and based on information provided by him, arrested Mohammad Shazeb Abid and Mohammad Kaif from Delhi. The gang assisted around 20 criminals, such as gangster Gopi Nawanshahria, who escaped to Poland, and others who fled to the United States (US) and Canada. Using counterfeit visas and a clandestine route through Bangladesh, they facilitated the smooth transit of these criminals to European countries.
20-May-2024
The National Investigation Agency (NIA) filed a charge sheet on May 20 before the NIA Special Court in New Delhi against Khalistan Tiger Force (KTF) chief Arshdeep Singh alias Arsh Dala, and his three associates, identified as Harjeet Singh alias Harry Maur, Ravinder Singh alias Rajvinder Singh alias Harry Rajpura, and Rajeev Kumar alias Sheela, for their involvement in a terror-gangster syndicate operating in Delhi, Punjab, and other states. The three associates were implicated in targeted killings and logistical support, with plans to execute terror attacks on Dala's instructions. The charge sheet was filed following their arrests between November 2023 and January 2024.