KHALISTAN EXTREMISM MONITOR
A project of the Institute for Conflict Management
A project of the Institute for Conflict Management
25-Mar-2020
Punjab Chief Minister Amarinder Singh called the terror attack in a Gurudwara in Kabul "extremely tragic and unfortunate". He requested Afghanistan President Ashraf Ghani to find out about the perpetrators and look after the people of India.
25-Mar-2020
Akal Takht and the Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee (SGPC) condemned the terror attack on a Gurudwara in Kabul and urged the Central government to initiate steps for the security of Sikh families in Afghanistan.
24-Mar-2020
Police recovered 4.29 kg of heroin from the Indo-Pak border in Ferozepur district, revealed Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) Harmanbir Singh Gill.
24-Mar-2020
The Akal Takht appealed to the public not to get swayed by rumours and cooperate with the authorities by observing the shutdown religiously. Akal Takht’s Jathedar Giani Harpreet Singh appealed to the Sikh community to recite prayers twice a day and do ‘ardas’ for ‘sarbat da bhala’.
23-Mar-2020
The Border Security Force (BSF) recovered 4.27 kg of heroin from an area close to the border outpost Bareke along the India-Pakistan border in Ferozepur district. According to officials, the consignment was stored in four plastic bottles and a China-made pistol was also seized along with the contraband.
23-Mar-2020
The Border Security Force (BSF) troops recovered three packets of heroin weighting around 3.25 kg in the Abohar sector in Fazilka district.
23-Mar-2020
A man, identified as Gurdev Singh was arrested along with 1.48-kg heroin from Behram Shersingh Wala village in Guruharsahai in Ferozepur district.
23-Mar-2020
Punjab Chief Minister Captain Amarinder Singh ordered a state-wide curfew to combat against Covid-19 spread. The government has decided to further scale down its staff in government offices.
22-Mar-2020
The Akal Takht Jathedar Giani Harpreet Singh called upon the Sikh community to follow the government's directions to prevent the spread of coronavirus. The Jathedar also appealed to people to come forward and extent all kinds of help to needy persons while noting that coronavirus infection has posed a serious threat to the lives of people across the world. He directed all Sikh organisations and Gurudwara management committees to extend a helping hand in this hour of need, irrespective of any discrimination on the basis of caste, creed and race.
22-Mar-2020
The Punjab government announced that a state wide lockdown will be enforced till March 31 as a measure to prevent the spread of the corona virus (covid19).
20-Mar-2020
As the country observes the 20th anniversary of the Chittisinghpura massacre in which 35 members of the Sikh community were gunned down in the Chittisinghpura village of the Anantnag district of J&K on March 20, 2000, for the community the wounds have healed but the scars remain. On the eve of the visit of the then President of the United States, Bill Clinton to India, terrorists had killed 35 members of the Sikh community by making them stand in two different queues outside side their homes in the village. Though the identity of the terrorists who carried out the massacre has not been known so far, security agencies had pointed the fingers towards terrorists from the Pakistan based Lashkar-e-Taiba terrorist outfit.
20-Mar-2020
Police arrested a gangster, Varinder Pal Singh alias Veena, who was a key aide of the dreaded criminal Sukhpreet Singh Budha and recovered a .32 bore pistol along with a few live cartridges from him from Barnala on March 20. Police had also impounded the car in which he was travelling. Preliminary investigation revealed that the weapon recovered from him belonged to Budha, who had handed it over to one Navtej Singh of Ransinh Kalan village before leaving the country. Veena took the weapon from him. Budha was allegedly accused in at least 15 criminal cases of murders, extortions and other heinous crimes in many districts of the state and is also suspected to be in contact with pro-Khalistani elements. Budha was deported from Armenia on November 22, 2019, and arrested by the Punjab Police from the Indira Gandhi International Airport, Delhi, on the same day.
20-Mar-2020
Police along with Narcotics Control Cell arrested one person, identified as Boota Singh and recovered 1 kg of heroin from him near Jodhpur village in Ferozepur district.
20-Mar-2020
Police arrested three persons, Manpreet Singh, Bhupinder Singh and Bakshish Singh and recovered 2,300 intoxicating tablets from them in Lakho Ke Behram in Ferozepur district.
20-Mar-2020
Police arrested one person, identified as Hoshiar Singh along with 20 gm of heroin from Lakho Ke Behram in Ferozepur district.
20-Mar-2020
Police arrested two men, identified as Balwinder Singh and Palwinder Singh for allegedly peddling drugs, and recovered 20 gm of heroin from them in Shahkot in Jalandhar district.
20-Mar-2020
Police arrested a migrant from Bihar, identified as Saroj Rai and recovered 400 gm of opium from him in Mullan Pur Dakha village in Ludhiana district.
20-Mar-2020
Police arrested a person, Manjindar Singh along with 190 intoxicating tablets in Chacha colony in Jalandhar district.
19-Mar-2020
Punjab Chief Minister Captain Amarinder Singh said that the State Government will not allow Pakistan-backed terrorists to foment trouble in Punjab. He said that he had been urging the Central Government to be tough on Pakistan. “This cannot go on,” he declared, adding that Punjab is not Kashmir, and was well equipped to fight back. The Army could continue fighting terror in Kashmir, but in Punjab, in addition to the Border Security Force (BSF) as the first line of defence at the borders, the 85,000 strong police force was well equipped to deal with any threat, he said, adding that the Army was also there for support as and when needed.
19-Mar-2020
The Director General of Police (DGP), Punjab, Dinkar Gupta termed attempts to radicalize youth through social media as a major challenge, but asserted that the Punjab Police had done exemplary work in combatting the same, while remaining highly vigilant to stop cross-border terrorism. The DGP said during the terrorism phase of 1980 to 1993, target killings and militancy in Punjab was rampant. About 28000 people lost their lives but Punjab defeated the terror with strong political will, in cooperation with people of Punjab. “When I was SSP of Hoshiarpur in 1992, there was a big problem of urban insurgency, but then DGP KPS Gill, regarded as the tallest leader, thwarted the whole terrorism model in Punjab. At that time, leaders also infused energy in Punjab Police, motivating it to remain strong in the fight against terrorism,” he recalled. The DGP also said that Punjab’s long border with Pakistan would always be a challenge for us.
19-Mar-2020
Punjab Chief Minister (CM) Captain Amarinder Singh said his government was committed to ensuring strict action against those responsible for Bargari and other sacrilege cases. Speaking at a conclave on the completion of his government's three years in office, the CM said that his focus had been on tackling drugs, gangsters and political killings.
19-Mar-2020
Punjab Cooperation and Jails Minister Sukhjinder Singh Randhawa said that Punjab would come up triumphant in the war against drugs too on the pattern of independence movement, Indo-Pak wars and war against terrorism and the state would again reclaim its glorious position and be a role model. While speaking on the occasion of a summit, he said that on assuming the office as Chief Minister, Captain Amarinder Singh constituted a Special Task Force (STF) and initiated the various anti-drug campaigns which have started bearing fruit.
18-Mar-2020
The National Investigation Agency (NIA) filed a charge sheet against nine members of Khalistan Zindabad Force (KZF) terrorist group for their alleged involvement in a case relating to dropping of arms and ammunition in Punjab by drones from Pakistan. According to NIA, all accused, including two senior citizens, were charged with relevant provisions of the Indian Penal Code (IPC), Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, Arms Act and Explosives Substances Act. The nine KZF members named in the charge sheet are Akashdeep Singh (21), Balwant Singh (48), Harbhajan Singh (65), Balbir Singh (70), Maan Singh (43), Gurdev Singh (40), Shubhdeep Singh (21), Sajanpreet Singh (22) and Romandeep Singh (20). The case relates to the information that Pakistan-based chief of KZF, Ranjeet Singh in connivance with Gurmeet Singh have smuggled arms, ammunition, explosives and fake Indian currency notes into India via drones from Pakistan, the NIA said. These consignments were received by their associates Akashdeep, Balwant, Harbhajan, Balbir and Shubhdeep in India in order to revive terrorism in Punjab and carry out a terror attack in the country, the NIA spokesperson said.
17-Mar-2020
The National Investigation Agency (NIA) special court in Mohali framed charges against three Babbar Khalsa International (BKI) operatives, identified as Ravinderpal Singh alias Ravi, Jagdev Singh alias Sonu (both belong to Punjab), and Harcharan Singh (Delhi), who were arrested for disturbing communal harmony in Punjab. However, the court discharged Nishan Singh alias Punia, as the NIA failed to file challan against him. The court will begin the trial in the case on April 9. The court had declared Kulwinderjit Singh alias Khanpuriya, who is now in Malaysia and mastermind in the case, as a proclaimed offender (PO) in February 2020. Ravinderpal and Jagdev were arrested in May 2019 for planning a terror strike in Punjab. Later, Punia and Harcharan were arrested from Amritsar district.
17-Mar-2020
The National Investigation Agency (NIA) failed to produce in court the death verification report of Khalistan Liberation Force (KLF) ‘chief’ Harmeet Singh alias Happy PhD, who was allegedly killed in Pakistan in January. The NIA special court, which was hearing the 2016-17 targeted killings case, fixed March 24 as the next date of hearing. Harmeet Singh was one of the main conspirators in the targeted killings case which took place in Punjab between 2016 and 2017.