KHALISTAN EXTREMISM MONITOR
A project of the Institute for Conflict Management
A project of the Institute for Conflict Management
Khalistan Zindabad Force (KZF) was formed in
1993 by Ranjeet Singh, a small-time criminal who was involved in smuggling and
a resident of Simbal camp in Jammu. He formed KZF after he developed contacts
with cross-border smugglers in RS pura and Samba areas and encouraged Sikh
youths of Jammu area to join terror ranks. Ranjeet Singh was arrested in 1993
in Maharashtra. However, he escaped from Police custody in December 1995 and
reached Pakistan via Nepal. Currently the KZF founder resides in Lahore and has
been involved in cross-border weapons smuggling.
KZF was created with the objective of creating
independent ‘Sikh homeland’ through armed violence. Despite its objective for
creation of ‘Sikh homeland’, KZF have been involved in sectarian violence. One
such example was the killing of Sant Ramanand of Dera Sach Khand Ballan in a
Gurudwara by KZF militants in May 2009 in Vienna (Austria). KZF has also
attempted to target Baba Gurinder Singh Dhillon, Chief of Radha Swami Sect in
Vienna in July 2010. They have also been involved in extortion, looting,
killings and attacks in public places. In February 2008, KZF planned an attack
on the convoy of Dera Sach Sauda leader Baba Gurmeet Singh Ram Rahim in
association with Harmnder Singh and Baba Bakshish Singh.
The initial Area of Operation (AO) was in Jammu
and later spread to Punjab. The outfit is mostly operating in the district of
Punjab adjoining Jammu. However, it has also carried out terror attacks in the
National Capital of India. KZF also has international presence in Switzerland
Italy, Germany, UK, USA, Austria, Belgium, Canada and Nepal. Although KZF has
been unsuccessful in executing any terror attacks in India in the recent years,
it still has a considerable hold in Sikh dominated Simbal camp in Jammu. Pro-secessionist
supporters are found highly amongst the Jammu based Sikh community,
particularly in Poonch District. In June 2014 Neeta tried to recruit cadres for
KZF from Simbal Camp region (Jammu) through his old associates namely Harpreet
Singh Ranjeet Singh (based in Spain) who were to be sent to Pakistan for arms
training via Malaysia.
The revenue generated from narcotic smuggling from Pakistan to India is one of the main revenue sources for KZF. Additionally, cross border smuggling of Fake Indian Currency Notes (FICNs) and donations from sympathizers to the Khalistani cause is are also the primary source of revenue generation for the terrorist group.
KZF has linkages with Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) of Pakistan as well as Jihadi groups such as Hizbul Muzahideen (HM), Lashkar-e-Toiba (LeT) and Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM). It also has nexus with multiple Khalistani groups such as Babbar Khalsa International (BKI). It has been reported that ISI has been encouraging Khalistani militant groups such as BKI, KZF and Khalistan Liberation Front (KLF) to coordinate their operations in Punjab.
KZF has predominantly targeted unarmed
civilians by executing blasts in public places and target public transport
vehicles with an objective to disturb the social fabric of Punjab. They have
also targeted political functionaries, Government officials and religious
figure heads. KZF has used social media
to target susceptible individuals to join its ranks. Ranjeet Singh and his
associates attempt to recruit Sikhs via social media platforms, besides
targeting those visiting Pakistan with Sikh pilgrim jatha. The KZF ‘chief’ with
connivance of ISI has been actively involved in imparting IED making and
weapons training to Sikh youths visiting Pakistan.
Although lately they haven’t been successful in
executing any terrorist incident in India, KZF had orchestrated and executed at
least five explosions in India between January 2000-06. Between 2007-2010 Ranjeet Singh succeeded in
forming four KZF modules in Punjab. In 2007 Ranjeet Singh had supplied a large
quantity of explosives and detonators to its module members to carry out
attacks in Punjab
In 2019, four KZF militants were arrested along
with a cache of arms and ammunition from Chohla Sahib village in Tarn Taran
District in Punjab. The recovered arms and ammunition includes Five AK-47
rifles, 16 magazines and 472 rounds of ammunition, four Chinese-made 30 bore
pistols, eight magazines and 72 rounds of ammunition and nine hand grenadesFICN
worth INR one million was also recovered from the arrested militants. One of
the arrestees identified as Balwant Singh was earlier a member of BKI. They
were planning to execute attacks in Punjab and its adjoining states
KZF is currently headed by Pakistan based
Ranjeet Singh alias Neeta. Additionally, some of its top militants are based in
USA, Europe and West Asia. They coordinate KZF’s activities by providing
monetary and logistical assistance.
Germany based Gurmit Singh alias Bagga,
Bhupinder Singh alias Bhinda and Avtar Singh Hundal, Shaminder Singh alias Sherry,
USA based Balwinder Singh Possi, Harjap Singh alias
Japhi
UAE based Satnam Singh alias Satta
KCF
is banned under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, 1967 by the Union
Ministry Home Ministry, Government of India.
| Incident Date | Incident | Civilian Killed | Military Killed | Security Force Killed | Civilian Injured | Military Injured | Security Force Injured | Civilian Abducted | Military Abducted | Security Force Abducted |
| 13-Jan-2023 | According to reports, the Melbourne Temple vandalism has shocked the Indian community in Australia. The walls of the Melbourne’s Mill Park BAPS Swaminarayan Mandir had slogans saying Hindustan Murdabad and with praises of Jarnail Singh Bhindranwale, the controversial Khalistani militant leader. Report said, there are grave concerns amongst the community and the Australian government regarding the spread of Indian anti national Khalistani elements in Australia. The Australian national newspaper reported in December 2022 that senior Indian government officials have raised the alarm over the growth of Sikh separatism in Australia and its links to terrorist groups in India, warning the Albanese government ministers of the movement’s propensity for violence. The report in the paper also attributed a source in the Indian government having concerns that the local Khalistani movement leaders were recruiting impressionable Indian Sikhs in Australia “who didn’t know what they were getting into.” There are concerns that the Sikh separatist groups Baber Khalsa International (BKI), Khalistan Commando Force (KCF), Khalistan Zindabad Force (KZF) and International Sikh Youth Federation (ISYF) which are all banned by India could be infiltrating Australia, as they have created a foothold in Canada. With the close relationship between India and Australia emerging, Australia needs to do more to stamp out these Indian anti-national elements in the community, the report added. | |||||||||
| 19-Jan-2022 | According to official sources, at least nine pro-Khalistan activities, including Jaswinder Singh Multani, the Sikhs for Justice (SFJ) operative who was recently booked by the National Investigation Agency (NIA) on the charge of attempting to revive terrorism in Punjab, have been operating from Germany for the past several years. Interpol Red Notices are pending against four of these suspects, Bhupinder Singh Bhinda, Gurmeet Singh Bagga and Shaminder Singh of the banned Khalistan Zindabad Force (KZF); and against Harjot Singh of the proscribed Babbar Khalsa International (BKI). Bhinda, an associate of Pakistan-based KZF chief Ranjeet Singh Neeta, was sentenced by a Frankfurt court in December 2012 to jail for four years and seven months for conspiring to kill the Radha Soami Beas Dera head during his visit to Germany in July 2010. According to government records, Bagga is wanted in three cases of explosives smuggling from Pakistan to Punjab. He was also sentenced to a four years’ prison term by a German court for the assassination bid on the Dera chief in Vienna. He has been trying to get asylum in Germany. The official said that in 2019-20, Bagga, with Neeta’s help, had weapons smuggled into Punjab from across the border using Pakistan-controlled drones. It was also found that another key suspect named Shaminder Singh went to Germany in 2011. He is closely associated with Bagga and one Belgium-based Jagdish Singh. “He had motivated two individuals, Palwinder Singh and Sandeep Kumar, who were arrested along with a woman, Jaswinder Kaur. Arms and ammunitions were seized from them,” the official said. The list includes accused Multani, whose role is also being probed in the recent Ludhiana court blast case. In November 2021, another official said he had claimed that a grenade attack at Punjab’s crime investigation agency office in Nawanshahr was the handiwork of his team. The NIA has announced a reward of Rs 10 lakh on him in the latest case. | |||||||||
| 15-Jan-2022 | According to reports, the central intelligence agencies have alerted the Punjab government that with only 30 days to go for the upcoming Assembly elections, terrorists may carry out a major attack in the state. A high alert has been issued to central and state government intelligence agencies in this regard and orders have been issued to strengthen security. According to the alert, Pakistan terrorists Wadhwa Singh Babbar (BKI), Paramjit Singh Panjwar, Ranjit Singh Neeta (KZF), Lakhbir Singh Rode (ISYF) are being used by Pakistan’s intelligence agency Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI). An alert sent to the Punjab government also said that RDX can also be used in elections in Punjab. | |||||||||
| 09-Dec-2021 | The high court in England on December 9 rejected an appeal by Indian authorities seeking permission to appeal against a magistrates’ court order turning down the extradition on human rights grounds of Kuldeep Singh alias Keepa Sidhu (44), wanted in India as an alleged senior member of the banned terrorist organisation Khalistan Zindabad Force (KZF). Singh, is charged with conspiring with others to commit terror activities in Punjab dating back to 2015-16, including a plot to assassinate then chief minister Parkash Singh Badal and deputy chief minister Sukhbir Singh Badal. Singh is also accused of recruiting youths in Punjab to the banned KZF organisation by offering them money and organising a meeting of separatists in a gurdwara. | |||||||||
| 07-Feb-2021 | A Pro-Khalistan militant identified as – Gurpinder Singh (37), with alleged links to the banned terror group, Khalistan Zindabad Force (KZF), was arrested by a joint team of Punjab and Maharashtra Police in Nanded city in Nanded District of Maharashtra. A resident of Gurusar in Muktasar Sahib District in Punjab, Gurupindar along with four other pro-Khalistan militants was active in fundraising and collecting arms from abroad for the movement. He had hatched a plot to assassinate Hindu leaders who opposed the Khalistan movement. An FIR was registered under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, along with sections of the Indian Arms Act, by Punjab’s special operation cell in Amritsar on December 19, 2020, naming four suspects, three of whom have been arrested while another is in Belgium. “Three of the arrested suspects — Sarabjit Singh alias Kirat, Amandeep Singh alias Bhinder and Gurdeep Singh alias Baghi — are active members of KZF and were conspiring to commit terrorist activities in Punjab. They are in touch with Belgium-based KZF terrorist Jagdish Singh alias Bhoora, who is motivating and facilitating them by arranging funds from different countries, procurement of weapons and asked them to recruit people to carry out terror activities. These suspects have already acquired arms and ammunition and were planning to carry out targeted killings of leaders of Hindu organisations and people who are against the Khalistani ideology, to disturb communal harmony and law and order in the state of Punjab”, states the FIR. | |||||||||
| 04-Oct-2020 | Punjab Police busted a Khalistan Zindabad Force (KZF) terror module with the arrest of two terrorists, identified as Makhan Singh Gill alias Amli and Davinder Singh alias Happy, from Noorpur Jattan village in Hoshiarpur district. Police also recovered sophisticated arms and ammunition, including an MP5 sub-machine gun (with two magazines and 30 rounds) and a 9mm pistol (with two magazines and 30 rounds), besides an Etios car, four mobile phones and an Internet dongle. The Director General of Police (DGP) Dinkar Gupta said that during preliminary investigations, Makhan disclosed they were in touch with Canada-based Harpreet Singh, who had instigated them to set up a terror module in Punjab to carry out targeted killings. Makhan, who had earlier been a close aide of Babbar Khalsa International (BKI) chief Wadhawa Singh Babbar, claimed KZF operative Harpreet was a frequent visitor to Pakistan and was an associate of Pakistan-based KZF chief Ranjeet Singh, alias Neeta. The DGP also said that Makhan was a hardcore pro-Khalistan militant who had earlier been arrested by the Punjab Police for involvement in arms smuggling and various terror-related offences. As many as seven cases had been registered against him. Pakistan-trained Makhan had stayed in the US during the 1980s and 90s. He had also stayed with the BKI chief in Pakistan for over 14 years, added the DGP. | |||||||||
| 29-Aug-2020 | Two suspected members of the banned terror outfit, Khalistan Zindabad Force (KZF), identified as Inderjeet Singh Gill and Jaspal Singh were arrested from GT Karnal Road in New Delhi on charges of hoisting a Khalistan flag at a Punjab government office in Moga district on the eve of the Independence Day on August 14. The Deputy Commissioner of Police (DCP) (special cell), Delhi Police, Sanjeev Yadav, said that “On the eve of the Independence Day, the two men had hoisted a Khalistan flag on the roof of the office of district collector of Moga.” They had also joined the Sikhs For Justice (SJF), a secessionist group based in the United States (US) that supports the secession of Punjab from India as Khalistan. During the interrogation, it is revealed that Inderjeet is a 10th class dropout who worked as a driver at Rauli, Punjab. Since his early years, he had a radical set of mind bent towards pro-Khalistan movement. Inderjeet subscribed to YouTube channel namely "Sikhs For Justice" recently on the insistance of his maternal uncle. He further disclosed that one person namely Rana from the US and one other person delivered lectures on the channel Sikhs For Justice delivering Anti-India preachings. It was also revealed that Rana had declared a reward of 2,500 dollars for waving the Khalistan flag and for tearing the Indian flag at Moga and a reward of 1,25,000 dollars for doing the same on the Red Fort and other historical buildings. | |||||||||
| 30-Jul-2020 | The European Council decided to renew the ban on the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) of Sri Lanka, along with 20 other organizations including Babar Khalsa, Hizbul Mujahideen’ and Khalistan Zindabad Force (KZF). | |||||||||
| 17-Jul-2020 | According to reports, Belgium-based Ranjit Singh Nita of the Khalistan Zindabad Force (KZF) is recording audio to seek support for “registration” for secessionist “Referendum 2020” from July 19 and these audio records are sent to various people, including journalists in India. In a 1.2-minute audio call having the country code 0032 (Belgium’s ISD code), the caller introduces himself as Nita, resident of Jammu and Kashmir and “mukh sewadar” of KZF, instigating people to register themselves to participate in the campaign. | |||||||||
| 17-Jul-2020 | According to reports, Belgium-based Ranjit Singh Nita of the Khalistan Zindabad Force (KZF) is recording audio to seek support for “registration” for secessionist “Referendum 2020” from July 19 and these audio records are sent to various people, including journalists in India. In a 1.2-minute audio call having the country code 0032 (Belgium’s ISD code), the caller introduces himself as Nita, resident of Jammu and Kashmir and “mukh sewadar” of KZF, instigating people to register themselves to participate in the campaign. | |||||||||
| 01-Jul-2020 | Government of India declared nine individuals, including pro-Khalistani leader and the key member of banned outfit Sikhs For Justice (SFJ), Gurpatwant Singh Pannun as terrorists under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act [UAPA]. Pannun, who organized the Khalistan 2020 referendum, has been seen actively running a campaign against India and motivating Sikh youngsters in his home state of Punjab to join militancy. The others who have been designated by the Union Ministry of Home Affairs (UMHA) as individual terrorists under the UAPA include Paramjit Singh (Babbar Khalsa International), Hardeep Singh Nijjar (Khalistan Tiger Force), Gurmit Singh Bagga (Khalistan Zindabad Force), Wadhawa Singh Babbar (Babbar Khalsa International), Lakhbir Singh (International Sikh Youth Federation), Ranjeet Singh (Khalistan Zindabad Force), Paramjit Singh (Khalistan Commando Force), Bhupinder Singh Bhinda (Khalistan Zindabad Force). Following an amendment in the UAPA recently, the UMHA declared a total of 13 persons as individual terrorists till date. In an official statement the U said, “These individuals are involved in various acts of terrorism from across the border and from foreign soil. They have been relentless in their nefarious efforts of destabilising the country, by trying to revive militancy in Punjab through their anti-national activities and through their support to and involvement in the Khalistan Movement.” | |||||||||
| 20-Jun-2020 | According to reports, with declining infiltration of terrorists into Jammu and Kashmir due to changed security apparatus after the revocation of Article 370 of Constitution, Pakistan’s Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) along with Khalistan Zindabad Force (KZF) and other terrorist groups has adopted a new modus operandi to fuel terror strikes in India. Reports revealed that the ISI is now using drones to deliver arms and ammunition from across the International Border (IB) into the Indian territory. | |||||||||
| 09-May-2020 | According to reports, Indian counter-terror agencies are suspecting a Khalistan conspiracy in the case of alleged Indian national, identified as 54-year-old Balvir who was accused of spying for Indian intelligence agencies and is set to face trial in Germany. The federal prosecutors have told a regional court in Germany that Balvir was spying on Sikh and Kashmiri communities for India's external intelligence agency, Research & Analysis Wing (R&AW). Indian counter-terror officials said that there is an increasing trend where anonymous complaints and petitions are being filed as part of a motivated campaign by the Khalistan groups against those who are taking them on. The Khalistanis are a potent force in countries like Germany, Canada, UK and US, said the official. Indian security agencies also suspect that elements in Germany with links to security agencies are providing support to the Khalistani leaders. They see this as a reason why no legal action is taken against the Khalistani operatives in that country. One of the top operatives roaming freely in Germany is Gurmeet Singh alias Bagga alias Doctor of the Khalistan Zindabad Force (KZF). Gurmeet Singh has allegedly been instrumental in re-organizing the terrorist group to revive terrorism in Punjab - where he is believed to have established sleeper cells, which was recently busted by the Punjab police. The National Investigation Agency (NIA) has recently issued red corner notices against Bagga and other Khalistani terrorists operating in different countries. According to sources, the counter-terror agencies are hot on the trail of not only Bagga but other Khalistani leaders with close links in Germany, like Gajinder Singh, Dal Khalsa, Wadhwa Singh, Babbar Khalsa, whose families are residing in Germany. Many of their associates, as well as other Khalistani leaders, have close ties in Pakistan, said the sources. | |||||||||
| 07-May-2020 | Punjab police arrested seven persons including the most wanted gangster Baljinder Singh alias Billa, who allegedly had links with slain Pakistan-based Khalistan Liberation Force (KLF) chief Harmeet Singh Happy and Germany-based Bagga of the Khalistan Zindabad Force (KZF) from Kapurthala area in Kapurthala district. Billa, who was wanted in more than 18 cases including that of murder, arms smuggling and drug peddling. Besides Billa, the six arrested are Sukhjinder Singh, Mohit Sharma, Lovepreet Singh, Mangal Singh, Maninderjeet Singh and Lovepreet Singh alias Lovely. Police also recovered consignment of weapons included two 30 bore drum machine guns, three pistols (marked SIG Sauer made in Germany), two Glock pistols (made in Austria), two 30 bore pistols, one 32 bore pistol, one .315 bore rifle, 341 live cartridges and two drum magazines and 14 pistol magazines from their possession. Rs 3 lakh in cash and one hundred Australian dollars were also recovered from them. The Director General of Police (DGP) Dinkar Gupta said that “one of the biggest caches of highly sophisticated weapons seized from a criminal gang”. He said the SIG Sauer pistols are in fact being used by members of the US Secret Service, which protects the highest elected leaders of the United States, especially the President of the United States. The DGP also said preliminary investigations suggested that most of the weapons recovered from Billa were smuggled from Pakistan in different consignments. Police were also investigating the role of militants in the supply chain of illegal weapons. Billa during preliminary investigations revealed that he was in contact with various Pakistan-based weapons and drugs smugglers and had already received many consignments of weapons and drugs from them, mostly in the Ferozepur area. | |||||||||
| 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. | |||||||||
| 12-Feb-2020 | The National Investigating Agency (NIA) special court in Mohali issued Non-Bailable Warrants (NBWs) against two Khalistani terrorists belonging to the Khalistan Zindabad Force (KZF) in a case related to dropping of arms and ammunition in Punjab by drones originating from Pakistan. NBWs were issued against KZF chief Ranjeet Singh Neeta,a resident of R. S. Pura in Jammu, who is based in Pakistan at present and Gurmeet Singh alias Bagga, a resident of Hoshiarpur district in Punjab who is based in Germany now. An NIA spokesperson said that, "During investigation, role of Neeta, Pakistan based chief of Khalistan Zindabad Force (KZF), a proscribed terrorist organisation and Singh, a key operative of KZF based in Hamburg, Germany has been found in the conspiracy of trafficking of illegal arms, ammunition, explosives, communication devices and FICNs into India to further terrorist activities." The duo is wanted for dropping arms and ammunition and fake currency notes in September 2019 at Chola Sahib in Punjab via unmanned aerial vehicles or drones that originated from Pakistan. A case against the two was filed under Sections 489-A, 489-B, 489-C and 120-B of the Indian Penal Code (IPC), the Explosive Substances Act, Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act and Prisoners Act in Amritsar.Nine persons have been arrested in this case till now and the probe is ongoing, the NIA spokesperson said. | |||||||||
| 02-Feb-2020 | The Indian intelligence agencies suspect that the killing of Khalistan Liberation Force (KLF) leader, Harmeet Singh alias Happy PhD is the fallout of a rivalry between three groups over control on drug money. An official said that, “There is an ongoing rivalry between Pakistan-based Khalistani groups led by Harmeet Singh, Khalistan Zindabad Force’s Ranjit Singh Neeta, and Paramjit Singh Panjwar of the Khalistan Commando Force. Initial reports suggest that drug money has been a major factor.”Harmeet Singh was wanted by various Indian agencies, including the National Investigation Agency (NIA), the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) and the Punjab Police, in 17 cases.The official also added that the recent spurt in trafficking of Afghan-origin heroin through traditional sea routes via Pakistan had led to generation of huge money for the syndicates that were also being used to push weapons into India for terror activities. | |||||||||
| 30-Jan-2020 | The National Investigation Agency (NIA) would again take the voice samples of the nine accused Khalistan Zindabad Force (KZF) terrorists for their involvement in smuggling of arms using drones from Pakistan to Indian Punjab through the International Border. Barring Gurdev Singh, all other accused in the case, Akashdeep Singh, Balwant Singh, Shukhdeep Singh, Mann Singh, Sajanpreet Singh and Malkit Singh appeared in the NIA court in Mohali. | |||||||||
| 14-Jan-2020 | Senior officials of the Union Ministry of Home Affairs (UMHA) are looking at intelligence reports of rising incidents of weapons being pushed into India by Pakistan to aid Khalistani militants. According to sources, the probe into weapons smuggling began late last year (2019) after a Khalistani module was busted in Ludhiana in Punjab. Sources said that based on the interrogation reports of the two suspects - a woman who worked as a nurse in Faridkot and a man who used to work as a driver in Dubai - who were arrested in Ludhiana in November 2019, and additional intel inputs, senior officials at the UMHA have understood that large cache of weapons have been pushed inwards through some routes in Haryana and Rajasthan. It also added that the Pakistani handlers who are abetting the revival of Khalistani movement in the country have met some senior members of proscribed outfits - Babbar Khalsa International (BKI) and Khalistan Zindabad Force (KZF) in Pakistan recently. | |||||||||
| 14-Jan-2020 | An army deserter, Harpreet Singh (25) who is accused of stealing rifles and ammunition from an army institute in Madhya Pradesh, managed to escape from the Police custody at the civil hospital in Hoshiarpur in Punjab where he was undergoing treatment for injuries. Harpreet was arrested from Tanda town on December 9, 2019 along with Jagtar Singh, the son of Khalistan Zindabad Force (KZF) militant Harbhajan Singh. He was admitted to the civil hospital on December 31 with a fractured arm. | |||||||||
| 25-Dec-2019 | Intelligence agencies sources claim that the Khalistani terrorists have escalated their efforts to smuggle weapons from Pakistan to Punjab to carry out terror attacks in Punjab. Sources also revealed that terror groups like Babbar Khalsa and Khalistan Zindabad Force (KZF) are in contact with their Pakistani handlers to smuggle weapons across the India-Pakistan border. | |||||||||
| 01-Oct-2019 | One militant of Khalistan Zindabad Force (KZF), Sajan Preet Singh, was arrested near Khalsa College in Amritsar, Punjab along with two pistols retrieved from a consignment of large arms from Pakistan. He was sent to five-day police remand. | |||||||||
| 29-Sep-2019 | Police recovered missing parts of drone from the Dode-Chhapa canal near Chabhal town, around 35km from Tarn Taran district headquarters. Earlier, Police busted a Khalistan Zindabad Force (KZF) module that had weapons smuggled to it through a drone. | |||||||||
| 27-Sep-2019 | According to reports, Pakistan based Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM) militant Aashiq Nengroo, originally hailing from Kakapora in Pulwama, along with Khalistan Zindabad Force (KZF) was instrumental in transporting consignments of arms, ammunition and explosives from Pakistan to Tarn Taran District of Punjab through drone. | |||||||||
| 27-Sep-2019 | The state special operation cell (SSOC) of Punjab Police, based on a tip-off from arrested Khalistan Zindabad Force (KZF) members, recovered a drone from Mahawa village near Attari on the Indo-Pak border in Amritsar. The SSOC officials claimed that two KZF members,Akashdeep and Subhdeephad hid the drone in the bushes on the defense drain near the village.The Police have arrested seven members of the KZF terror module till now. | |||||||||
| 26-Sep-2019 | A five-member NIA team visited the spot where a China-made drone was destroyed by the alleged Khalistan Zindabad Force (KZF) terror module members. The interrogation of arrested persons revealed that they had also thrown several parts of the drone into UBDC canal near Dhode village near Jhabalin Amritsar district. | |||||||||
| 25-Sep-2019 | The State Special Operation Cell (SSOC) of the Punjab Police arrested a Khalistani terrorist, Gurdev Singh, brother of Germany-based Gurmeet Singh Bagga alias Doctor, for his alleged involvement in the dropping of arms and ammunition by drones from across the border in Punjab from PAP Chowk in Jalandhar. FICN with a face value of three lakh was also recovered from his possession. Gurdev is the sixth person to have been arrested in connection with Khalistan Zindabad Force (KZF) terror module in Punjab so far. | |||||||||
| 23-Sep-2019 | The Amritsar judicial magistrate court sent five members of a Khalistan Zindabad Force (KZF) terror module busted by Punjab Police to 10-day Police remand. Punjab Police on September 22 arrested four KZF members from Chola Sahib village in Tarn Taran District. Police investigation revealed that one Maan Singh of Samurai village in Gurdaspur District, currently lodged in Amritsar jail in an Arms Act and UAPA case, had recruited Akashdeep when they were lodged together in the Amritsar jail. The four arrested accused and Maan Singh, who was brought on production warrant, were presented in the court which sent them to police remand till October 3. | |||||||||
| 22-Sep-2019 | Punjab Police busted a terror module of the revived Khalistan Zindabad Force (KZF), that was conspiring to unleash a series of terrorist strikes in Punjab and adjoining States, by arresting four suspects along with a huge cache of arms, including five AK-47 rifles, pistols, satellite phones and hand grenades from Tarn Taran District. Those arrested were identified as Balwant Singh, Akashdeep Singh, Harbhajan Singh and Balbir Singh. The module was backed by the Pakistan-based ‘chief’ of the KZF, Ranjeet Singh alias Neeta, and his Germany-based associate, Gurmeet Singh alias Bagga. The module was planning to carry out multiple terrorist strikes in J&K, Punjab and other States. | |||||||||
| 22-Sep-2019 | Punjab Chief Minister Captain Amarinder Singh decided to transfer the ‘KZF terror module’ case to NIA for further investigation. A statement released by the Punjab CMO stated, "Module was conspiring to unleash series of terror strikes in Punjab and/or adjoining states. Police seized huge cache of arms including 5 AK-47 rifles, pistols, satellite phones and hand grenades. Further investigations in the case handed over to NIA." Punjab CM also urged the Central Government to direct the Indian Air Force (IAF) and Border Security Force (BSF) to launch necessary counter-measures to check for any possible threats. | |||||||||
| 10-Sep-2019 | According to reports, Pakistan's ISI held a high-level meeting with many terror groups including Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM), Lashkar-e-Toiba (LeT), Hizb-ul-Mujahideen (HM), and Khalistani Zindabad Force (KZF) in Islamabad to plan its nefarious activities against India.The closed-door meeting in Islamabad was also attended by some other Pro-Khalistan terror groups. | |||||||||
| 25-Aug-2019 | Police arrested a man, identified as Harpal Singh Pala from near Kartarpur in Jalandhar District of Punjab for allegedly providing secret information about Indian Air Force (IAF) and Army installations to Pakistan-based pro-Khalistan leader Gopal Singh Chawla. He was also allegedly in contact with Khalistan Zindabad Force (KZF) chief Ranjit Singh Neeta and Kulwant Singh Mathada, who is promoting the ‘Referendum 2020’. Police recovered seven mobile handsets from him. | |||||||||
| 28-Mar-2019 | Jalandhar Police arrested a militant identified as Amrik Singh alias Manga reportedly belonging to Khalistan Commando Force (KCF) and Khalistan Zindabad Force (KZF) from Jalandhar District. He was wanted in twin blasts case at Jalandhar bus stand carried out by Satnam Singh alias Satta Lasuri on April 28, 2006 and May 24, 2006. Pakistan-based KZF leader Ranjeet Singh Neeta and USA-based Balwinder Singh Possi had masterminded the blasts along with Amrik Singh. Amrik had a close association with infamous terrorists Gurdeep Singh alias Deepa Heranwala of KCF. | |||||||||
| 10-May-2018 | The Punjab Police arrested Sandeep Singh and Amar Singh, an alleged Khalistani radicals supported by an Australia-based Khalistani outfit—International Sikh Federation (ISF), from Kotkapura of Faridkot District and recovered two .30 bore pistols, and 40 live ammunitions from their possession. The Police had received a call that a motorbike has collided with a SUV on the NH between Faridkot and Kotkapura. When the Police approached the location, the duo were trying to escape from the location on their motorbike. However, the Police team managed to arrest them, said Faridkot SSP Nanak Singh. During the interrogation, they claimed to be in contact with Gurjant Singh—resident in Australia and ‘Head’ of ISF who indulged them into radicalisation over the Facebook. The members of the terror module that was busted by Punjab Police on May 29, 2017, had come together to form a sub-group called Khalistan Zindabad (KZ). This outfit is linked to the website of Gurjant’s ISF. | |||||||||
| 04-Dec-2017 | The Punjab Police filed a chargesheet against 11 Khalistan Zindabad Group (KZG) extrimist. Those named in the chargesheet included Harwinder Singh, Mohkam Singh Barnala, Amritpal Kaur, Tarsem Singh, Jarnail Singh, Satnam Singh, Sukhpreet Singh, Parminder Singh, Gaurav Kumar and Ramandeep Singh. They all were arrested in May 2017. However, one terrorist was not identified. During their arrests, the Punjab Police had recovered the letterhead of Babbar Khalsa International (BKI) and four weapons. The militants had formed the KZG and were planning to initiate another militant outfit — Jatha Veer Khalsa (JVK) - on the anniversary of the 1984 Operation Blue Star. These terrorists were financed by the Khalistani sympathisers based out in Pakistan, Saudi Arabia and the United Kingdom (UK), said an unnamed police official. | |||||||||
| 08-Nov-2017 | The terror module busted by the Punjab Police on November 5 was allegedly operated by Pakistan-based KZF terrorist Harmeet alias Happy alias PHD, while the network of all operatives was spread in the UK, France and Italy. Happy's name had figured in the questioning of the members of the previous terror modules also. The accused whose arrest was announced on November 7, Jimmy Singh of Jammu, Jagtar Singh Johal alias Jaggi and gangster Dharmendra alias Guggni, were being questioned for further leads. | |||||||||
| 05-Nov-2017 | The terror module busted by the Punjab Police was allegedly operated by Pakistan-based Khalistan Zindabad Force (KZF) terrorist Harmeet alias Happy alias PHD, while the network of all operatives was spread in the UK, France and Italy. Happy’s name had figured in the questioning of the members of the previous terror modules also. The accused whose arrest was announced on November 7, Jimmy Singh of Jammu, Jagtar Singh Johal alias Jaggi and gangster Dharmendra alias Guggni, were being questioned for further leads. Police sources claimed that the questioning had revealed they operated with a new modus operandi in which sub-groups of the module worked on different aspects of the killings. | |||||||||
| 02-Sep-2017 | Fresh Inputs from intelligence agencies suggeststhat Sikh militants are getting more support from across the border to foment trouble in Kashmir and other parts of the county. The fresh inputs show support for Manjit Singh, 'leader' of Khalistan Zindabad Force (KZF). The intelligence inputs say this outfit is getting more active in South Kashmir and Kathua region of the state and in Punjab. Sikh radical elements sheltered in Pakistan are engaged in anti-India activities such as providing financial support to terror activities. | |||||||||
| 29-May-2017 | Four persons, including a woman, were arrested, who according to the Police, were planning to carry out targeted killings under the banner - ‘Khalistan Zindabad’ from Bathinda District of Punjab. They have been identified as Harbarinder Singh of Amritsar, Amritpal Kaur of Ludhiana, and Jarnail Singh and Randeep Singh of Gurdaspur. Two pistols (4 magazines and 5 live rounds) were also recovered from them. On the radar of these “highly radicalised youth” were Congress leaders Tytler and Kumar, as well as those they considered responsible for incidents of sacrilege or desecration. | |||||||||
| 16-Apr-2017 | Punjab Police arrested two suspected terrorists belonging to a terror module set up by a Europe-based Khalistan Zindabad Force (KZF) in Batala town of Gurdaspur District. Police also claimed to have recovered "a huge cache of arms and ammunition from their possession". The seizure included one 9 mm pistol, two magazines and 13 live rounds, two 32 bore pistols, along with 4 magazines and 33 live rounds and one 12 bore country made gun. | |||||||||
| 07-Mar-2017 | Balwinder Singh, a citizen of India, was sentenced, on March 7, to 15 years in a US prison after he pleaded guilty to conspiring while living in northern Nevada to plot terror strikes in his home country (India), US. District Judge Larry Hicks in Reno also ordered Balwinder Singh to remain under lifetime federal supervision upon his release from prison after prosecutors argued that Singh has had ties to known terrorist groups in India for more than two decades. FBI Special Agent Aaron Rouse of Las Vegas said the plot was foiled after a co-conspirator was arrested trying to board a flight in San Francisco bound for Bangkok, Thailand, with two sets of night vision goggles purchased by Singh at a Cabela's sporting goods store in Reno. Assistant U.S. Attorney Brian Sullivan said it's possible Singh still will be extradited to India where he faces criminal charges in connection with a terror attack on a passenger bus that killed three people in India in April 2006. "This isn't somebody who was just recruited like some of the young people who think it's really cool to go get involved with the Jihad," Sullivan said. "Mr. Singh has been involved with terrorism or terrorist organizations for over 20 years."Prosecutors in the Justice Department's counterterrorism section say Singh worked with two terrorist organizations - Babbar Khalsa International (BKI) and Khalistan Zindabad Force (KZF) - to try to establish an independent Sikh state in the Punjab region. | |||||||||
| 24-Aug-2016 | Punjab Police recently arrested three militants of Khalistan Zindabad Force (KZF), a group demanding separate Sikh homeland called Khalistan through armed struggle. A huge cache of weapons was also recovered from their possession. The trio, arrested from Amritsar, was in touch with handlers in Belgium, Pakistan and the UK. It is believed they had direct links with Pakistan’s ISI. | |||||||||
| 21-Nov-2015 | To revive Khalistan movement in Punjab and execute more attacks like Gurdaspur to destabilize peace in the state of Punjab recently Pakistan’s ISI held a meeting with militant outfits, including Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT), Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM), Babbar Khalsa and Khalistan Zindabad Force (KZF). KZF 'chief', Ranjeet Singh alias Neeta, works closely with the ISI to carry out terror attacks in Punjab. Neeta has provided a two-month-long language training to LeT’s Fidayeen (suicide bombers) near Gurudwara Kartarpur Sahib near Lahore, in Punjab (Pakistan). “The militants have been trained by Neeta in the Sikh tradition and Gurumukhi script. They are likely to be disguised as locals following infiltration. Local police departments and state law enforcement agencies have been put on high alert,” intelligence input based on intercepted communication revealed. ISI and terror groups sheltered by the Pakistani state authorities have been systematically trying to revive the militancy in Punjab with the help of Babbar Khalsa and outfits such as the KZF. The Pakistan-based outfits are also getting financial support from sympathizers in Germany and the UK. | |||||||||
| 22-Oct-2015 | Intelligence agencies report that Pakistan’s ISI is behind the recent cases of desecration of Guru Granth Sahib in its bid to revive the Khalistan insurgency in the state of Punjab. The involvement of Foreign hands is traced by investigations and traced calls to Australia by two suspects arrested in the Faridkot sacrilege case, Jaswinder Singh and Rupinder Singh. Police believe the funding comes from Australia and Dubai for desecration incidents. ISI is working with pro-Khalistan elements in the Sikh diasporas to revive militancy in Punjab. ISI officials in Pakistan had met militants from jihadi outfits like Lashkar-e-Toiba(LeT) and with Sikh militants of Babbar Khalsa International (BKI), Khalistan Zindabad Force (KZF) to plot strikes in Punjab, Jammu & Kashmir and Delhi. Nearly 15-20 militants who were trained by ISI, which also issued funds for the anti-India strikes, were acquainted with Sikh traditions and Gurumukhi script at Kartarpur Sahib, a gurudwara in Pakistan, with the help of KZF's Ranjit Singh. They were also briefed on the topography of Punjab. Even the commemoration of Operation Blue Star anniversary earlier this year by hardliner Sikh elements across the United Kingdom (UK), France, Canada, Germany, Pakistan, and Malaysia, etc, was noted with concern by Indian agencies. More recently, ISI officials had reportedly visited a gurudwara in South Hall, London, to incite trouble ahead of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's recent visit there. A senior intelligence official claimed that ISI's mission to rekindle the embers of militancy in Punjab has been encouraged by the weakness of the state leadership and the churn in Punjab society. | |||||||||
| 20-Oct-2015 | Central intelligence agencies warned the Punjab government against Pakistan’s intelligence agency, ISI’s possible attempt to create trouble in Punjab. The letter, dated October 1 talked about an attempt by the ISI to send a group of militants trained in Sikh manners and customs to create trouble in the state. Intelligence agencies sent the letter to senior Punjab police officer that circulated to all districts to take necessary steps. The letter said a group of 15-20 militants from Pakistan - who had undergone arms training under 26/11 Mumbai attack mastermind Hafiz Sayeed - had been trained in "Sikh traditions and Gurumukhi script at Pakistan's Gurudwara Sahib for about two months". Their trainer was Ranjeet Singh, the Chief of Khalistan Zindabad Force (KZF). However, despite the advance information, protests seared Punjab over the acts of desecration, plunging the Akali-BJP Government into the worst crisis of its nine-year rule. | |||||||||
| 27-Sep-2015 | ISI has mobilized militants belonging to groups like LeT, JeM, and HM as well as Sikh militants associated with BKI and KZF remnants based on its soil, for possible joint strikes in Punjab, Jammu, and Kashmir, Delhi or other parts of India. | |||||||||
| 08-Jul-2015 | According to Intelligence reports Pakistan’s ISI is funding pro-Khalistan groups in India and abroad including Babbar Khalsa in India, US, Germany, and Canada. 22 Sikhs that rose slogans on the periphery of Golden Temple near Akal Takht in Amritsar recently were instructed to take help from Pakistan to spread violence in India. According to a report the Pakistani spy agency can also use the ultras of four Khalistan militant groups - Ranjit Singh Meeta - headed Khalistan Zindabad Force (KZF), Jagtar Singh Tara-headed Khalistan Tiger Force (KTF), Wadhwa Singh-led Babbar Khalsa International (BKI) and Harminder Singh Minto-led Khalistan Liberation Force (KLF) - to revive militancy and launch terror strikes in Punjab. The ISI and the radical Sikh groups are trying to lure unemployed youths to join terror groups. | |||||||||
| 09-Sep-2014 | KZF operative Dilbagh Singh who was arrested in Guwahati (Assam) was trying to explore possibilities of procuring weapons from the North East region. Easy availability of illegal weapons in the North East has become a matter of grave concern and now Khalistani militant groups have also started eyeing the region to procure weapons. The KZF still has a presence in Punjab and Jammu areas and the ‘chief’ of the outfit, Ranjit Singh Neeta is now out of the country and his whereabouts are not known. But there have been inputs that he has been trying to revive the outfit and the efforts to procure weapons might be a part of the plan to revive the same. | |||||||||
| 05-Aug-2014 | Punjab local court remanded nine days Police custody to three militants of KZF and KLF, who were arrested by Punjab Police in assistance with Jammu Police on August 4 from Miran Sahib in Simbal Camp of RS Pura area in Jammu District. The three Harpreet Singh alias Harmeet Singh alias Pintu, Karanjit Singh alias Pamma and Swaran Singh Shabba were booked under sections 17,18, 20 of the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA), and sections 153-A,121 and 120-B of the IPC and sections 25/54/59 of the Arms Act. | |||||||||
| 04-Aug-2014 | Punjab Police with the assistance of Jammu Police arrested four militants of KZF and KLF from Miran Sahib in Simbal Camp of RS Pura area in Jammu District (J&K). The arrested militants were identified as Harpreet Singh alias Harmeet Singh alias Pintu, Karanjit Singh alias Pamma, Swaran Singh alias Shabba and Jasmeet Singh. Police recovered three Pakistani SIM cards, four Pakistani mobile telephones and half a dozen local SIM cards from the possession of arrested militants. | |||||||||
| 04-Aug-2014 | The investigations have revealed that activities of KZF, which is headed by Jammu’s Ranjit Singh Neeta, now based in Sialkot of Punjab province in Pakistan and KLF headed by Harminder Singh alias Mintu of Punjab, also in Pakistan, were being funded and coordinated by militant elements based in Spain and England. | |||||||||
| 16-Feb-2014 | The UK in its consolidated list of organizations involved in terror activities or terror financing brought out on February 14, 2014, has named ISYF, HM, Babbar Khalsa and Khalistan Zindabad as organizations that require total financial sanctions. | |||||||||
| 03-Feb-2014 | Khalistani terror groups have now found a new ally in JeM ‘chief’ Maulana Masood Azhar to foment trouble in India and to keep alive their demand for separate statehood. Azhar is leading a campaign along with Khalistanis to target senior BJP leader L.K. Advani, according to an Intelligence Bureau (IB) alert. According to a UMHA secret document, dated October 14, 2013 states that "Pakistan spy agency ISI recently held a meeting of Khalistan militant outfits and asked them to chart a broad outline of their plan". The terror groups that participated in the meeting included BKI ‘chief’ Wadhwa Singh, KZF head Ranjit Singh Neeta, KCF ‘chief’ Paramjit Singh Panjwa, KTF ‘chief’ Jagtar Singh Tara, ISYF ‘chief’ Lakhbir Singh Rode and KLF ‘chief’ Harminder Singh Mintu. | |||||||||
| 19-Dec-2013 | A 39-year-old Indian-American, Balwinder Singh alias Jhajj alias Happy alias Possi, who received asylum in the US, was arrested by the FBI on charges of providing material support to Sikh separatist groups BKI and KZF planning militant attacks in India. | |||||||||
| 15-May-2013 | Daljit Singh alias Jitu, a militant of KZF was extradited from Malasia to the Punjab Police through IB. A lookout notice was there against Daljit at all airports in the country. He was produced in Hoshiarpur court following his extradition and now is in police remand. He was wanted by the State Police in a case of arms and ammunition recovery on March 21. Daljit is the nephew of Punjab militant BalwinderPossi, who is wanted by the State Police and is presently in the US. | |||||||||
| 09-Apr-2013 | Punjab Government Secretary (Home) Samir Kumar stated before the Supreme Court that the Security environment in Punjab continues to be problematic while justifying the deployment of a large number of state Police personnel for VVIP security. In view of the security environment in Punjab, as brought out, and prevailing high degree of threat to VIPs and dignitaries from various militant outfits like HM, JeM, LeT, BKI, KCF, KZF, KTF, and other militant and fundamentalist outfits, suitable security arrangements are imperative to secure the lives of targeted dignitaries and individuals based in the border state of Punjab, the state claimed before the SC. | |||||||||
| 21-Mar-2013 | Punjab Police arrested three people including the mother (Salinder Kaur) and sister (Kulwinder Kaur) of US-based KZF militant Balwinder Singh Possi and recovered arms and ammunition from the house in Possi village of Hoshiarpur District. The third arrested person, Ranjit Singh Rana, is from NurpurJattan village in the same District. All the three arrested persons were charged under various sections of the Arms Act and the UAPA. One 7.65mm automatic pistol, one 0.9mm US-made pistol, one.30 bore Mauser, one .32 bore revolver, three magazines, and 89 cartridges were recovered from the house of Possi's mother and sister. Two country made pistols were also recovered from the accused. | |||||||||
| 27-Nov-2012 | Union Minister of State for Home Affairs R.P.N. Singh replied to a question in Lok Sabha that various militant groups including LeT, IM, JeM, HuM, Al-Umma, Al Badr, HuJI, HM, BKI, KZF, and KTF are engaged in militant activities in the country and as per available information militants in India are often supported by their parent outfits based abroad particularly in Pakistan. | |||||||||
| 30-Sep-2012 | British national Jaswant Singh Ajad, actively working for banned militant organizations BKI, KZF, and KTF was arrested from the Focal Point area of Jalandhar District. An Italian made 9 mm pistol and two magazines having 15 rounds were recovered from him. He has a strong relationship with the banned militant organization BKI led by Wadhwa Singh Babbar, KZF led by Ranjit Singh Neeta, KTF led by Jagtar Singh and Parpinder Singh of Scotland and others. Ajad was financing the militant modules to reunite them, he was also managing the sleeper cells of militants by providing them money, networking, and hideouts. A case under sections 120-B, 121, 121-A IPC, 25 Arms Act 10, 13, 17, 18-B, 20, 38, 39, 40 of Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act 1967 has been registered against him. | |||||||||
| 24-Sep-2012 | The FIR registered against Panch Pardhani leader and former militant Daljit Singh Bittu names three others believed to be in Pakistan those booked by Police are Wadhawa Singh, ‘chief’ of the Babbar Khalsa International (BKI), Ranjit Singh Neeta of the Khalistan Zindabad Force (KZF) and Jagtar Singh Tara of the Khalistan Tigers Force. Daljit Singh Bittu was arrested by the Police on September 21, 2012, and has been booked under the Arms Act, Explosives Act and for anti-national activities. The police had raided his residence and office and also confiscated the laptop and computer found there. Bittu has also been accused of threatening witnesses of the 2007 Shingar cinema blasts, which killed six people and injured thirty. The FIR says Bittu and three other militants were planning to revive terrorism in Punjab. Bittu has been accused of promising to provide a hiding place for the men. Meanwhile, police are reportedly trying to piece together the funding trail. Police revealed that they know where this money is coming but for courts, we need concrete proof. Moreover, need to check whether this money is or will be used to spread violence in the state. | |||||||||
| 06-Sep-2012 | Nehchal Sandhu, Intelligence Bureau (IB) Cheif, stated that militants focusing on Punjab and neighbouring states posed a challenge. Intelligence Inputs revealed that Pakistan based BKI Chief Wadhwa Singh Babber’s group and other militancy groups like KCF and KZF are making efforts to destabilize Punjab. Fresh inputs also indicate that Jagtar Tara, one of the three assassins of late Punjab CM Beant Singh, who is absconding following his escape from a Chandigarh jail in 2004, was playing an active role in trying to revive militancy. | |||||||||
| 20-May-2012 | Two suspected KZF militants, identified as Sandeep Singh and Sukhwinder Singh, were arrested along with 2.7 kilograms of RDX, three detonators, two timers, three bombs, two China-made pistols, and 11 cartridges from Kamana village of Nawanshahr District. The duo owed allegiance to Ranjeet Singh Neeta-led KZF. | |||||||||
| 08-Sep-2011 | Investigators were also taking a closer look at a few intelligence inputs over recent months that hinted at efforts by Khalistani extremist groups to target the national capital. Sources said inputs spoke about militant Sikh outfits BKI and KZF trying to revive in India and carry out attacks. | |||||||||
| 08-Dec-2010 | The Central Government said that militant groups, especially those based abroad, were trying to revive militancy in Punjab. “Available reports suggest that militant groups, especially those based abroad, continue to persist with their efforts to revive militancy in Punjab," Union Minister of State for Home Ajay Maken said in a written reply. The Minister, however, added that no specific inputs were indicating the development of any nexus between Khalistani outfits like BKI or KZF and militant Islamist organizations like LeT. | |||||||||
| 10-Oct-2010 | A cadre of the KZF, who is also associated with the BKI, was arrested by Anti-Terror Squad (ATS) of Uttar Pradesh Police from Saharanpur in Uttar Pradesh. The arrestee, identified as Gurjant Singh, was a native of Kurukshetra District in Haryana. An Italian pistol and some documents were seized from him. Gurjant reportedly acted as a link between KZF and BKI. | |||||||||
| 25-Aug-2010 | The Intelligence Bureau (IB) warned that "inimical agencies" operating from "international bases" were trying to revive militancy in Punjab by allying with Khalistani outfits and the LeT. Calling attempts to revive Sikh militancy a worrisome trend, IB Chief Rajiv Mathur said, "There have been clear attempts by inimical agencies abroad to reactivate Sikh terrorist elements, forge nexus between LeT and terrorist groups like BKI and KZF and mobilize their resources for planning terrorist violence in Punjab and elsewhere in the country." | |||||||||
| 04-Aug-2010 | A serious attempt is being made by the militants sitting in Pakistan with the help of Pakistan’s Army and spy agencies to revive militancy in Punjab using former militants and border smugglers and International Border (IB) of Jammu for smuggling of arms, explosives and hawala money. Sources said Satnam Singh alias Tainy son of Prabhu Dayal, a resident of Kapoorpur in RS Pura and Parvesh son of Bihari Lal, a resident of Avtal in RS Pura were reported to have disclosed during their questioning by Police and CI that the militants of KZF with active connivance of Pakistan Army, Rangers and ISI used to throw consignments of arms, explosives, ammunition and hawala money from across the border to this side at a fixed point near the border fencing. The consignments were meant for ‘KZF’ militants in Punjab. | |||||||||
| 02-Aug-2010 | Police claimed to have arrested two conduits of the KZF in connection with the seizure of arms and ammunition from Border out Post (BoP) Bakarpur in the R S Pura sector of Jammu District. Parveen Kumar son of Bihari Lal and Satnam alias Tani son of Prabhu Dayal resident of Kapoorpur in R S Pura was arrested by the Police in connection with the seizure of arms and ammunition from Border out Post (BoP) Bakarpur in RS Pura, a week ago. "Both the accused during interrogation disclosed that KZF chief Neeta, presently in Pakistan had sent the said consignment of arms and ammunition to this side for carrying subversive activities in Pakistan," sources said, adding that it was the second consignment sent by Neeta in last few months. | |||||||||
| 23-Jul-2010 | Pakistan-based Sikh militants, supported by the Pakistani ISI, might carry out bomb blasts in New Delhi before the Commonwealth Games, the Punjab Police has alerted. An advisory circulated recently among all senior officers in the State by the intelligence department of Punjab Police has pointed out that Sikh militant leaders based in Pakistan are under "tremendous pressure" from the ISI to carry out sabotage activities in India before the Games. "Militant leaders, including KZF chief Ranjit Singh Neeta, are planning to undertake some militant actions, including bomb blasts, before the Games scheduled in New Delhi in October," the advisory said. It also stated that around 15 kilograms RDX was smuggled into India from Pakistan by Neeta's contacts, which was divided into three parts, most of which have been seized by Police from different places in the State including Ferozepur and Rajpura. Intelligence sources of the State Police have inputs that Neeta could himself enter India if those directed to carry out the nefarious designs failed in their task. "Certain militants sitting abroad are desperate to push four Sikh extremists into India to carry out nefarious activities," the advisory said. Meanwhile, police have been sensitized and directed to take necessary preventive and detective measures to avoid any untoward incident, official sources said. | |||||||||
| 29-May-2010 | An ISI agent, identified as Irfan Ulla was arrested, with maps of vital defense installations, near the Indian Air Force (IAF) station at Mullanpur in Mohali District. The Police recovered a pistol with 20 live cartridges, maps, pictures and code numbers of IAF stations and airports in different parts of the country from him. Mohali Senior Superintendent of Police Gurpreet Singh Bhullar told journalists that Ulla was an ISI agent and close aide of dreaded terrorists Ranjit Singh alias Neeta, head of the KZF, and his associate Gurmeet Singh Bagga, who is based in Germany. | |||||||||
| 19-Apr-2010 | A link between the KZF and LeT has once again surfaced with the infiltration of two militants, including a Pakistani and a local of Doda in Jammu and Kashmir, from Bamial sector of Gurdaspur District in Punjab. | |||||||||
| 18-Apr-2010 | A group of militants is reported to have intruded into the Indian Territory, taking probably for the first time Gurdaspur (Punjab) route, on the night of April 18. However, two of them were trapped by Police and Security Force (SF) personnel at Chabe Chak Nursery along Ujh River under the jurisdiction of Rajbagh Police Station in the Kathua District in the evening of April 19. While only two militants have been spotted so far, Police didn’t rule out the possibility of some more militants having succeeded in infiltrating into this side but maintained that at no other place movement of the intruders has been observed. According to sources, the group of militants included some activists of the Dashmesh Regiment of the KZF besides Pakistani militants. While the KZF militants were reported to have left for Punjab, the Pakistani militants intruded into Kathua District. | |||||||||
| 07-Mar-2010 | Sikh militant outfits based abroad are trying to revive terrorism in Punjab and the Government is maintaining a close watch on such outfits, the UMHA said. "Available reports suggest that Sikh militant groups, especially those based abroad, continue to persist with their efforts to revive militancy in Punjab," Minister of State for Home Affairs Ajay Maken told the Rajya Sabha (Upper House of Parliament). "A close watch is maintained on the activities of various groups known to have been engaged in trying to foment terrorist activities in Punjab," he said. He also added that pro-Khalistan terrorist outfits namely BKI, ISYF, KCF and KZF continued to be banned under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Amendment Act, 2004 | |||||||||
| 21-Oct-2009 | The Special Operation Cell of Punjab Police arrested a militant of the KZF, identified as Barkat Singh, a close associate of Ranjit Singh, the KZF chief who is based in Pakistan, against whom many cases of terrorist activities were registered. Barkat Singh is currently wanted by the Jammu and Kashmir Police in a murder case and at present was living on a fake identity. Investigations reportedly revealed that Ranjit Singh was trying to push in a huge consignment of arms, ammunition and explosives from Pakistan, which was to be received by Barkat through an associate in Jammu, Police said. | |||||||||
| 26-May-2009 | The KZF has claimed responsibility for the May 24 attacks on a Gurdwara in Vienna. The London-based Akash Radio Website claimed that it had received an e-mail, written on the KZF's letterhead, was signed by one Ranjit Singh. The letter said the incident occurred because "these people did not heed to the warnings that they should not disrespect Guru Granth Sahib ji by sitting parallel to Sri Guru Granth Sahib ji; letting people bow before them in the Guru Sahib's presence and committing various unacceptable anti-Maryada (Sikh code of conduct) acts. As they continued to commit such sins, the KZF was forced to take this action." | |||||||||
| 24-May-2009 | A violent clash between two groups of Sikh worshippers broke out in a Gurudwara in Vienna, capital of Austria. Austrian Police said that the two groups of Sikh worshippers clashed with knives and a handgun in the Gurudwara. A 56-year-old Sikh Guru Sant Ram Nand was shot at and injured and he died later in the night. 30 others were also injured. Sant Ram Nand was accompanying another Guru Sant Niranjan Das who was the preacher at the ceremony in the Gurudwara. The two preaching to a gathering that calls itself the Shri Guru Ravidass Sabha. The clash broke out when groups of people of rival Sikh sect intruded and attacked the gathering with knives and guns objecting to the sermon. Sant Ram Nand belonged to DeraSach Khand, a follower of Guru Ravidass. Some reports suggest that militants belonging to KZF had killed him. The Vienna violence spread to Punjab (India) as well. The army was called in Chandigarh. | 1 | 30 | |||||||
| 04-May-2009 | According to military intelligence, a group of 935 Pakistani women are being trained by the ISI, in the Faridkot District of Punjab province in Pakistan to entice men and motivate them into becoming terrorists in India. According to a military intelligence report, the group is also being trained at a camp in Kotli, Pakistan. It said a joint meeting of senior ISI officers with representatives of al Qaeda, LeT, KZF and KCF on April 23 near Talwandi (in Pakistan) was attended by Neeta, KZF leader, and Nazira Begum, the wife of Kotli training camp principal Shah Mohammad. Taught to breach national boundaries, these women generally enter India through West Bengal and Bihar borders and are equally adept at using computers and in blackmailing youth. | |||||||||
| 25-Sep-2008 | Security Forces arrested a Rashtriya Rifles (RR) personnel identified as Ranjeet Singh for his suspected links with the KZF when he was fleeing from his unit at Baramulla in Kashmir valley along with two AK-47 rifles in Banihal town on Jammu-Srinagar National Highway. | |||||||||
| 15-Feb-2008 | Three KZF militants were sentenced to five years rigorous imprisonment by a court in the national capital New Delhi for a bomb blast in the Kailash Hotel in the Paharganj area on March 13, 2000, in which three persons were wounded. The court sentenced the KZF militants, Sukhdev Singh, Satbir Singh, and Purushottam Singh, after holding them guilty for entering into a conspiracy to wage war against the country. | |||||||||
| 02-May-2007 | Intelligence agencies said that the Pakistan-based LeT and the ISI, Pakistan’s external intelligence agency, are trying to revive militancy in the Indian State of Punjab through sympathizers of the Sikh militant groups like the BKI, the ISYF, KZF, and KCF. The information has been sent to the Punjab Police about the plans to target towns of Jalandhar, Ludhiana and Pathankot region. Instructions have also been given to monitor the activities of sympathizers of BKI-Hawara, ISYF-Rode, KZF- Neeta, and KCF, who are sending funds through hawala to "re-launch their separatist movement". | |||||||||
| 19-Jun-2006 | Satnam Singh alias Satta, a terrorist of the Pakistan-based KZF, confessed during police interrogation that he carried out the bomb blasts at the bus terminal in Jalandhar on April 24 on the instructions of the outfit’s chief Ranjit Singh Neeta. | |||||||||
| 17-Aug-2004 | According to the annual report of Union Home Ministry 2003-04, Pakistan continues to provide sanctuary to various Sikh militant groups and the ISI, Pakistan’s external intelligence agency, was exerting pressure on these outfits to revive terrorist activities in Punjab. The report indicated that Pakistan continues to provide sanctuary to leaders of important pro-Khalistan militant outfits like BKI headed by Wadhwa Singh, KCF led by Paramjit Singh Panjwar and ISYF led by Lakhbir Singh Rode. Militant groups like KZF led by Ranjit Singh alias "Neeta" and Dal Khalsa International led by Gajinder Singh also continued to receive sanctuary from Pakistani soil, the report said. | |||||||||
| 25-Mar-2000 | Police claim to have solved the mystery surrounding a series of train and bus blasts in Jammu, Himachal Pradesh, Punjab and Delhi with the arrest of three militants of the Khalistan Zindabad Force (KZF). |