KHALISTAN EXTREMISM MONITOR
A project of the Institute for Conflict Management
A project of the Institute for Conflict Management
Terrorists and criminals in Punjab in the past few years have been secretly using the coded covert tactic 'Dead Letter Box' (DLB) to execute terror and criminal activities by luring poor and unemployed youth into terror and criminal activities.
According to the modus operandi, terrorists from different parts of the world attract youth through social media with promises of money, pulling them into anti-national activities via 'Dead Letter Box' strategy.
Police interrogation of terrorists and gangsters who have been arrested recently revealed that they were using 'Dead Letter Box' to exploit young people for their criminal activities.
The sponsors and handlers of these acts used social media to convey the name of a landmark where they would hide money or items related to their operations.
Poor and unemployed youth remained the priority targets of terrorists and criminals, often agreeing to work for them in exchange for small amounts of money.
According to police, in the last one and a half year, at least 27 incidents have been recorded where terrorists and gangsters used the 'Dead Letter Box' strategy to execute criminal and terror activities.
What is 'Dead Letter Box'?
'Dead Letter Box' is a mechanism historically used by spies to convey information or drop items for targeted operations. It is also used in the context of illegal or covert activities to exchange items or information between individuals. DLB strategy is used to avoid direct contact and potential surveillance.
A look at some recorded incidents where handlers used 'Dead Letter Box' strategy
2022 attack on police intelligence headquarters
The RPG attack on the police intelligence headquarters in Mohali in 2022 was executed using the 'Dead Letter Box' strategy.
Grenade attacks in border areas
Several grenade attacks in Punjab’s border areas were planned and executed using the 'Dead Letter Box' modus operandi.
Related News
Hand grenade attack
A member of the Khalistan Zindabad Force module, which was exposed by police, also followed the same tactic.
Pro-Khalistan terror group SFJ used 'Dead Letter Box' tactics
Pro-Khalistan outfits including Babbar Khalsa International (BKI), Sikh For Justice (SFJ), and international criminal gangs of Lawrence Bishnoi and Goldy Brar were also found by police to be using the 'Dead Letter Box' modus operandi to lure youth into terror and criminal activities.