KHALISTAN EXTREMISM MONITOR
A project of the Institute for Conflict Management
A project of the Institute for Conflict Management
08-Aug-2025
According to sources, the Mumbai Crime Branch plans to question comedian Kapil Sharma again following the second firing incident at his Kap’s Café in Surrey, Canada, and an “open threat” allegedly issued by the Lawrence Bishnoi gang. The questioning may take place in person or over the phone for security reasons, and officials are also considering extending protection to Sharma.
08-Aug-2025
Police on August 8 arrested seven individuals, Harmanpreet Singh, Taranvir Singh, Natish Bhatti, Gurnur Singh, Navjot Singh, Harman Singh, and Amarinder Singh — for firing at a house in Hassanpur village — and seized three country-made pistols, a magazine, a Bolero jeep, and a motorcycle possession in Hassanpur village in Sangrur district.
07-Aug-2025
Between August 7 and 11, Punjab Police arrested 15 unidentified smugglers and seized 305.80 grams of heroin and 15 intoxicating capsules in Jalandhar in Jalandhar district.
07-Aug-2025
Khalistani terrorist Gurpatwant Singh Pannun, chief of the banned terror outfit Sikhs For Justice (SFJ), on August 7 issued a video message threatening to assassinate Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann on Independence Day in Faridkot in Faridkot district.
07-Aug-2025
The Amritsar Commissionerate Police on August 7 arrested four individuals, identified as Akashdeep Singh alias Akash, Ramanpreet Singh, Pratap Singh, and Sarbjit Singh alias Babbal and seized two 9 mm PX5 pistols, two 9 mm Glocks, and three .30-bore pistols from their possession in Chheharta Sahib, Amritsar district. Police stated that the accused were in direct contact with Pakistan-based smugglers and had been receiving arms consignments along the Indo-Pak border. The weapons were intended for supply to local gangsters, with operations coordinated from villages near the international border.
07-Aug-2025
The Anti-Gangster Task Force (AGTF), in collaboration with Tarn Taran police on August 7 successfully foiled a major terror plot orchestrated by Pakistan-based Babbar Khalsa International (BKI) terrorists Harwinder Singh alias Rinda and Lakhbir Singh alias Landa, and neutralised an improvised explosive device (IED), pushed from Pakistan near Naushera Pannuan village in Tarn Taran district.
07-Aug-2025
Jalandhar Police on August 7 conducted targeted operations at multiple locations across Jalandhar city, and arrested 16 individuals, seized 46 grams of heroin, 61 intoxicant tablets and 36,000 ml of illegal liquor along with one car and one motorcycle in Jalandhar in Jalandhar district.
06-Aug-2025
Jalandhar Police on August 6 arrested two Punjab police constables, identified as Navpreet Singh and Navdeep Singh and seized 15 grams of heroin from their possession, near Rama Mandi area in Jalandhar in Jalandhar district. Both were posted at the Punjab Armed Police (PAP) headquarters and were arrested following leads from the arrest of two drug peddlers.
06-Aug-2025
On August 6, five outsiders, including Lawrence Bishnoi gang associate Braham Dutt, along with Vishal, Vikash, Anand Yadav, and Kshitij, were found on the Panjab University (PU) campus in Chandigarh ahead of student body elections. The group was detained by police after being spotted near the law auditorium in a car with Punjab registration plates. Braham Dutt, who has seven First Information Reports (FIRs) against him, was previously arrested in a shooting case linked to gangster Lawrence Bishnoi.
06-Aug-2025
On August 6 in Amritsar, the five Sikh high priests pronounced tankhaah (religious punishment) on Punjab Education Minister Harjot Singh Bains for participating in a dance performance during a July 24 event in Srinagar marking the 350th martyrdom anniversary of Guru Tegh Bahadur. The high priests directed Bains to undertake a series of religious tasks, including barefoot pilgrimages, sewa at gurdwaras, and offering karah parshad, as spiritual atonement for violating Sikh maryada. Bains accepted the punishment and stated that he would comply with the directives.
06-Aug-2025
On the intervening night of August 6 and 7, pro-Khalistan slogans were spray-painted on the boundary walls of Khalsa College, the district courts, and a temple in Amritsar in Amritsar district. Khalistani terrorist Gurpatwant Singh Pannun, chief of the banned terror outfit Sikhs For Justice (SFJ), claimed responsibility via a video message.
05-Aug-2025
Delhi Police on August 5 arrested a key member of the Tillu Tajpuriya gang, identified as Manjeet alias Dada and seized a pistol with three live rounds, a stolen motorcycle and a mobile phone from his possession, near Sarojini Nagar in South West Delhi district in Delhi.
05-Aug-2025
Sidhu Moose Wala’s mother, Charan Kaur, on August 5 revealed that unidentified assailants had fired shots at her late son’s statue in Dabwali, Sirsa district, Haryana. The Lawrence Bishnoi gang claimed responsibility for the attack, with gang members Goldy Dhillon and Arzoo Bishnoi stating that those portraying Moose Wala as a martyr were misleading the public and warning of dire consequences for such acts.
05-Aug-2025
Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) national spokesperson and former Delhi Member of the Legislative Assembly (MLA) RP Singh, on August 5, issued a strong statement against Canada, accusing it of enabling extremism by allowing the establishment of a so-called “Khalistan Embassy” in Surrey. Describing it as a “serpentarium,” Singh said the move had turned Canadian soil into a breeding ground for separatist forces and warned that such actions threaten international diplomatic norms. Citing the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations, he argued that recognising missions of imaginary separatist states constitutes a direct violation of international law, not an exercise in free speech. Singh urged External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar to lodge a strong protest and demanded immediate clarification and action from the Canadian government.
05-Aug-2025
Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee (SGPC) President Harjinder Singh Dhami, on August 5 in Amritsar, strongly criticised the government for granting fresh parole to Dera Sacha Sauda chief Gurmeet Ram Rahim, while several Sikh prisoners who have completed their sentences remain incarcerated. Calling the repeated release of Ram Rahim a reflection of discriminatory policies, Dhami questioned why special provisions were being extended to a convicted criminal, while justice continued to be denied to Sikh detainees.
05-Aug-2025
The National Investigation Agency (NIA) on August 5 carried out searches at 19 locations in connection with the March 14, 2025 grenade attack on Thakur Dwara Sanatan Temple in Amritsar, and seized several incriminating materials, including mobiles/digital devices, in the border districts of Amritsar and Gurdaspur in Punjab. The NIA linked the March 14 grenade attack in Amritsar to a foreign-backed terror network that radicalised and armed Indian youth using drugs and money.
05-Aug-2025
Director General of Police (DGP) Punjab, Gaurav Yadav, on August 5 chaired a high-level meeting with senior police officers in Chandigarh to review the ongoing anti-drug campaign, law and order, and security arrangements ahead of Independence Day. He also shared updates on the Yudh Nasheyan Virudh campaign, launched on March 1, under which the Punjab Police have registered 15,671 First Information Reports (FIRs), arrested 24,639 drug smugglers, and recovered 1,020 kg of heroin, 330 kg of opium, 21 tonnes of poppy husk, 14 kg of charas, 377 kg of ganja, 3.3 kg of cocaine, 31.74 lakh intoxicant pills, and INR 12.25 crore in cash.
05-Aug-2025
Punjab Police on August 5 arrested two operatives of the Lawrence Bishnoi gang after a brief encounter, identified as Sumit Bishnoi and Pankaj Malik, and seized a .32 pistol and four live cartridges from their possession, in Dera Bassi Sahibzada Ajit Singh (SAS) Nagar district.
05-Aug-2025
On August 5, Punjab Police, on day 157 of its “Yudh Nashian Virudh” campaign, registered 89 first information reports (FIRs), arrested 109 drug smugglers, and seized 1.5 kg of heroin, 1.1 kg of opium, 35 quintals of poppy husk and INR 44,910 drug money from the possession of arrested drug smugglers, across Punjab.
04-Aug-2025
Police on August 4 arrested Nav Pandori, a close associate of gangster Jaggu Bhagwanpuria, and seized a pistol from his possession in Amritsar, Amritsar district. His arrest follows the earlier detention of two individuals, Gora and Joban, who were caught with a major consignment of weapons smuggled from Pakistan. The seizure included one AK-308 Saiga assault rifle with two magazines, two Glock 9 mm pistols with four magazines, 90 live cartridges for the AK rifle, 10 live 9 mm cartridges, INR 7.5 lakh in drug money, an i20 car, and three mobile phones. According to police, Pandori was the intended recipient of the consignment and had gone into hiding following its recovery.
04-Aug-2025
On August 4, a large crowd of demonstrators led by the Quami Insaaf Morcha marched through Patiala, demanding the release of Sikh prisoners who have completed their sentences and calling for stricter laws against the desecration of religious scriptures. The protesters raised slogans against the Punjab and Union governments, burnt effigies of Prime Minister (PM) Narendra Modi and Chief Minister (CM) Bhagwant Mann, and accused them of neglecting key religious and human rights issues.
04-Aug-2025
On August 4, the Akal Takht summoned Punjab Cabinet Minister Harjot Singh Bains to appear before the five Singh Sahiban (high priests) on August 6 for allegedly hurting Sikh sentiments by organising “entertainment performances” at a government event in Srinagar commemorating the 350th martyrdom anniversary of Guru Tegh Bahadur. The meeting, to be held at the Akal Takht Sahib Secretariat in Amritsar under the leadership of officiating Jathedar Giani Kuldip Singh Gargaj, will deliberate on various Panthic and religious matters. The Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee (SGPC) had earlier condemned the performances as an affront to Sikh values, prompting Bains to express regret and offer to accept full moral responsibility.
04-Aug-2025
Chief Minister (CM) Bhagwant Mann on August 4 launched the second phase of the Punjab government’s anti-drug campaign, “Yudh Nasheyan Virudh 2.0”, in Ludhiana. The initiative aims to mobilise public participation in the fight against drug trafficking. As part of the campaign, Defence Committees comprising 10 to 20 members will be established in villages and urban wards to monitor and report drug-related activities in coordination with the police.
04-Aug-2025
Chief Minister (CM) Bhagwant Mann on August 4 claimed that the drug problem in Punjab had substantially declined due to the ongoing crackdown under his government’s anti-drug campaign, “Yudh Nasheyan Virudh, while addressing the media in Ludhiana in Ludhiana district. Launched on March 1 with an initial three-month deadline, the campaign was later extended beyond May 31. CM Mann stated the problem had been “significantly reduced” through collective efforts, though not fully eliminated.
04-Aug-2025
On August 4, Punjab Police, on day 156 of its “Yudh Nashian Virudh” campaign, registered 63 first information reports (FIRs), arrested 87 drug smugglers and seized 967 grams of heroin, 267 kg of poppy husk and 1869 intoxicant tablets/capsules from the possession of arrested drug smugglers, across Punjab. With this, the number of total drug smugglers arrested has reached to 24,592 in 156 days.