KHALISTAN EXTREMISM MONITOR
A project of the Institute for Conflict Management
A project of the Institute for Conflict Management
16-Apr-2023
Reports suggest that the Punjab police on April 16 conducted a search operation at a suspected hideout of Amritpal Singh, the leader of Waris Punjab De (WPD), in the Rania area of Sirsa district of Haryana. However, the search did not yield any results, and the police had to leave the location empty-handed.
16-Apr-2023
According to AK Vidyarthi, the Deputy Inspector General (DIG) of Border Security Force (BSF), in the last month, there have been nearly 10 instances of drone incursions into Indian territory along the Punjab border with Pakistan. However, despite their efforts, BSF soldiers have only managed to capture one of them. To date, the BSF has confiscated 40 kg of heroin and 7 pistols, along with ammunition. According to the DIG, the movement time of drones within Indian territory has been reduced by smugglers and anti-national elements, which has made it challenging for the troops to intercept them. BSF has reported that between March 19 and April 15, there were 10 instances of drones infiltrating Indian territory from the Pakistani side and delivering arms and drugs. Among these occurrences, one black quadcopter (DJI Matrice) was apprehended on March 27 in Rajatal village of the Amritsar district. Interestingly, on March 27, the BSF captured two suspects and seized a drone, a pistol, and 10kg of heroin in four different incidents reported along the India-Pakistan border.
16-Apr-2023
Police on April 16 carried out cordon and search operations in various regions of the Tarn Taran district to curb drug and illegal alcohol trafficking. As a result, 35 individuals involved in the production and smuggling of illegal alcohol and drugs were apprehended. Police sources revealed that during the operations, two proclaimed offenders were also arrested. Additionally, a significant quantity of illicit liquor, 1 kg of opium, and 16gm of heroin were confiscated from the Bhikhiwind sub-division, while 795gm of heroin and 300 tablets of intoxicants were seized from the Goindwal sub-division.
15-Apr-2023
Punjab Police on April 15 arrested a key associate of pro-Khalistan preacher Amritpal Singh, identified as Joga Singh, who is in-charge of ‘dera’ in Pilibhit in Uttar Pradesh, from Sirhind in Fatehgarh Sahib district. According to Narinder Bhargav, the Deputy Inspector General (DIG) in the border range, Joga Singh had direct contact with Amritpal Singh, the head of Waris Punjab De (WPD). He facilitated shelter and transportation for the pro-Khalistan leader and his assistant Papalpreet from March 18 to March 28, arranging their stay in Pilibhit before their return to Punjab.
15-Apr-2023
The head of Sikhs For Justice (SFJ), Gurpatwant Singh Pannun, has claimed responsibility for the shooting and killing of four soldiers at Bathinda Military Station on April 12. In a video, he has demanded the creation of Khalistan as a separate nation for Punjab to prevent such attacks and warned Union Defence Minister Rajnath Singh. The Khalistan Tiger Force (KTF) has also claimed responsibility for the firing at the Bathinda Army Cantt. Ajit Singh, a member of KTF, has issued a letter on letterhead alleging that the Indian Army was responsible for the killing of Sikhs during their attack on the Golden Temple in 1984, and this attack on the Indian Army was an act of vengeance.
15-Apr-2023
The Punjab Police on April 15 dismissed the claims made by banned groups such as the Khalistan Tiger Force (KTF) and Sikhs For Justice (SFJ) of being responsible for the killing of four soldiers at Bathinda Military Station on April 12 as "diversionary". The Additional Director General of Police (DGP), Surinderpal Singh Parmar stated that based on the investigations so far, it appears to be an internal issue of the army. The weapon used in the attack, a 5.56 INSAS rifle, was recovered with spent cartridges. Thus, Parmar dismissed the claims made by KTF and SFJ as hollow and intended to garner media attention.
15-Apr-2023
Border Security Force (BSF) on April 15 arrested an intruder identified as Ramtali of Tati Usman village in Kasur district of Pakistan from an area close to the Raja Mohtaam outpost along the Indo-Pakistan border in Ferozepur district.
15-Apr-2023
Border Security Force (BSF) and police on April 15 arrested three persons, identified as Sandeep Singh Pehalwan, Surinder Sonu and Puneet Kajla, and recovered 12 kg of heroin from them in Abohar in Fazilka district.
15-Apr-2023
The Border Security Force (BSF) on April 15 recovered three packets weighing 3.2 kg of heroin that were airdropped by a Pakistani drone near the International Border (IB) in the Bachiwind village in Amritsar district.
14-Apr-2023
Giani Harpreet Singh, the acting Jathedar of Akal Takht, on the occasion of Khalsa Sajna Divas on April 14, urged Sikhs to be "shastradhari" (armed). He criticized the excessive police presence in Talwandi Sabo during Baisakhi and Khalsa Sajna Day. The Jathedar also refuted the notion that Punjab is a state of chaos, saying that people in the region live in peace and harmony. He stated that situations become terrible when there are conflicts between different communities in a state and even worse when there is a confrontation with the government over something.
14-Apr-2023
During a Baisakhi conference on April 14 at Talwandi Sabo in the Bathinda district, organized by the Shiromani Akali Dal (Amritsar), there were reports of slogans being chanted in favor of Khalistan and Amritpal Singh. Simranjit Singh Mann and the leader of SAD (A) expressed concern that Punjabi youth were facing harassment and that there was a deliberate effort to create a climate of fear.
14-Apr-2023
Police on April 14 arrested a practicing lawyer, Rajdeep Singh for his alleged links with fugitive Khalistani leader Amritpal Singh from Hoshiarpur in Hoshiarpur District.
14-Apr-2023
Police on April 14 arrested a man identified as Navdeep Singh and an Assistant Sub-Inspector (ASI) identified Kulwinder Singh for trying to smuggle heroin into the Faridkot jail. The jail authorities seized 4 gm of heroin from their possession.
13-Apr-2023
Police on April 13 arrested two men, identified as Hardeep Singh and Kuldip Singh for allegedly harbouring fugitive Khalistani leader Amritpal Singh from Mehtiana in Hoshiarpur district. According to police, when Amritpal escaped from police after reaching Marnaian village on March 28, he met both the brothers who were loading sand in a tractor-trailer. They allegedly took him to their residence where they provided him with food and clothing.
13-Apr-2023
Gurpatwant Singh Pannun, the leader of the banned pro-Khalistani group Sikhs for Justice (SFJ), shared a 48-second video on social media in which he called on Sikh soldiers in the Indian Army to gather at Damdama Sahib, Talwandi Sago on April 14 to support his campaign for a referendum on Khalistan. Pannun indirectly referenced Mao Zedong's tactics for revolution in the video, stating that "there will be no peace in India unless we free Punjab from Indian occupation through the Khalistan referendum." Pannun also attempted to leverage the Bathinda cantonment incident to breathe new life into his struggling movement.
13-Apr-2023
The Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee (SGPC) chief Harjinder Singh Dhami on April 13 accused the Punjab government and the police of interfering with the arrangements being made by gurudwaras for ‘Khalsa Sajna Diwas’ (Baisakhi). The Chief of the SGPC stated that the police were imposing arbitrary restrictions on the Sangat (community), and he added that the government's actions were "extremely bad" and could not be condoned.
13-Apr-2023
The Dal Khalsa raised the flag of the Sikh Empire in remembrance of Sarkar-e-Khalsa and honored the martyrs of the faith who were shot by the neo-Nirankaris in Amritsar 45 years ago. Jathedar of the Takhat Keshgarh Sahib, Gaini Raghbir Singh, led a prayer for the health and freedom of political prisoners held in Indian jails.
13-Apr-2023
A joint team of counter-intelligence and Moga police questioned the mother of Khalistan radical leader Avtar Singh Khanda, Charanjit Kaur for the second consecutive day on April 13.
13-Apr-2023
According to sources, the Punjab police are frantically searching for the fugitive Khalistani leader Amritpal Singh, as they believe he may visit any of the state's gurdwaras, particularly during the Baisakhi period. A significant paramilitary and police force has been stationed near the Golden Temple. Since the night of April 13, police have been inspecting all vehicles on highways and connecting roads in response to rumors that Amritpal may try to travel to Talwandi Sabo during Baisakhi. Police in Punjab and other states are taking every possible measure to locate him, including putting up posters and searching each car and house.
13-Apr-2023
Punjab-based Sikh leaders expressed their criticism of the Punjab Government for blocking social media accounts belonging to media outlets in the state.
12-Apr-2023
Harjinder Singh Dhami, the President of the Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee (SGPC), announced that the signature campaign for the release of Bandi Singhs (Sikh prisoners) will end on Baisakhi. He also stated that over 25 lakh forms have been filled out as part of the campaign.
12-Apr-2023
Police on April 12 arrested four persons, identified as Manpreet Singh, Jaspal Singh, alias Gopi, Sukhdev Singh and Dyalinder Singh and recovered 36 kg of heroin worth around INR 180 crore from their possession near the Lalowali drain bridge in Fazilka district. According to police, the consignment, smuggled from Pakistan, was to be transported to Amritsar.
12-Apr-2023
Border Security Force (BSF) recovered 4.5 kg of heroin that was dropped by a drone on the intervening night of April 12-13 near the International Border (IB) of Maharkhewa Mansa village in Fazilka district.
12-Apr-2023
Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader from Punjab, Sukhminderpal Singh Grewal, has offered a reward of INR 100,000 for anyone who can publicly humiliate Gurpatwant Singh Pannun, the leader of the Sikh for Justice (SFJ) organization, by blackening his face and slapping him. Grewal made this declaration on Twitter, stating that it was in response to SFJ's INR 100,000 reward offer for anyone who could throw a shoe at Prime Minister (PM) Narendra Modi during his visit to Assam on April 14.
12-Apr-2023
According to an announcement made by the Punjab Police, individuals who provide information about Amritpal Singh, pro-Khalistani leader who is on the run, will be given a "suitable" reward. The police have assured that the identity of the informant will remain confidential. Posters featuring the picture of Amritpal Singh, have been displayed in various locations, including the Batala railway station.
12-Apr-2023
During the fifth India-UK Home Affairs Dialogue (HAD) in New Delhi on April 12, the Indian government raised concerns about pro-Khalistani elements exploiting the United Kingdom's (UK) asylum status to engage in terrorist activities in India. The Indian government also urged the British authorities to enhance their monitoring efforts and take ‘appropriate proactive’ measures. The security breach that occurred at the Indian High Commission in London last month was also brought up by the administration.
12-Apr-2023
Police on April 12 detained Charanjit Kaur, the mother of pro-Khalistan activist Avtar Singh Khanda, from her residence in Moga in Moga district, and she is expected to be interrogated regarding unlawful hawala money transfers, according to a senior police official. Khanda, who is seeking asylum in the United Kingdom (UK,) was arrested by British authorities for removing the Indian flag at the Indian Embassy in London on March 19. Investigations into the Amritpal Singh case found that Khanda trained him in Dubai to keep the Khalistan movement alive before he (Amritpal) came to India.
12-Apr-2023
Meanwhile, it was also reported that pro-Khalistan activist Avtar Singh Khanda’s younger sister was taken into custody from a hospital in Mohali where she was employed as a nurse. However, no further details were available on her detention.
12-Apr-2023
Police on April 12 arrested four drug smugglers, identified as Manpreet Singh, Jaspal singh alias Gopi, Sukhdev Singh and Dyalvinder Singh and recovered 35 packets of heroin, weighing 36.9 kg from their possession near Lalo Wali village in Fazilka district.
11-Apr-2023
A senior police officer confirmed that they had detained Hardeep Singh alias Deepa, of Dhurkot Charat Singh Wala village on April 11 and sent him to Ludhiana in the custody of the Counter Intelligence wing. He was arrested in the Amritpal case.
11-Apr-2023
The Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee (SGPC) on April 11 referred Waris Punjab De (WPD) Chief Amritpal Singh as innocent. Bhagwant Singh Sialka, an Executive Member of the SGPC and a prominent lawyer stated that Amritpal Singh and his associates are against the Punjab Government, not against the people. He advised the Punjab Police to cease their actions and pledged to offer legal support to Amritpal Singh and his accomplices.
11-Apr-2023
According to reports, former journalist Papalpreet Singh had been operating his own media channel and was serving as media advisor to Waris Punjab De (WPD) chief Amritpal Singh. In 2007, after the imposition of the death penalty on Jagtar Singh Hawara and Balwant Singh Rajoana, who were convicted of assassinating former Chief Minister Beant Singh, Papalpreet reportedly advocated for the formation of an independent Sikh state. He was also affiliated with the Sikh Youth Front and Sikh Youth Federation (Bhindranwale). Papalpreet gained notoriety during the controversial 2015 Sarbat Khalsa, where he read out a message from imprisoned separatist Narain Singh Chaura, who purportedly had ties to the Babbar Khalsa International (BKI), an organization associated with Pakistan's Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI).
11-Apr-2023
On April 11, Papalpreet Singh, a close aide of fugitive Khalistan leader Amritpal Singh, was shifted to the Dibrugarh Central Prison in Assam after being arrested by Punjab police on April 10 in the Kathu Nangal area of Amritsar. Papalpreet was booked under the National Security Act (NSA) and, according to the police, was wanted in six other cases.
11-Apr-2023
The Punjab government on April 11 informed the High Court (HC) that Daljit Singh Kalsi, who has been detained under the National Security Act (NSA), was assisting Waris Punjab De (WPD) chief Amritpal Singh in spreading radical ideology and inciting violence against the state to establish a separate Khalistan. The government also clarified that any allegations to the contrary are false and misleading.
10-Apr-2023
Gurpatwan Singh Pannun, the head of the banned pro-Khalistan group Sikhs For Justice (SFJ), on April 10, announced a reward of INR 100,000 for anyone who would throw a shoe at Prime Minister (PM) Narendra Modi during his visit to Assam on April 14 for the Bihu celebrations. Pannun sent a pre-recorded message to various journalists in Assam, in which he accused PM Modi of being accountable for the deaths of individuals in Assam and pro-Khalistan Sikhs in Punjab.
10-Apr-2023
Sikhs For Justice (SFJ) leader Gurpatwant Singh Pannun, in a video message, claimed that pro-'Khalistan' sympathizers raised 'Khalistan' flag at Mata Sahib Kaur College, Talwandi Sabo, Bathinda and wrote a slogan that on 324th Khalsa Sajna Day (Baisakhi) as 'Punjab Hal Khalistan'. Pannun also expressed gratitude towards the girls from the college who participated in raising the flag and writing the slogans.
10-Apr-2023
Police on April 10 arrested four associates of Canada-based gangster Devinder Pal Singh alias Gopi, identified as Prajvil Sethi alias Shiv, Deepak Kumar alias Monu, Gurdarshan Singh and Akashdeep Singh Dhaliwal alias Gagan in Moga city in Moga District. Police also recovered two pistols and two motorcycles from the accused who were planning to extort money by issuing threats to a local businessman.
10-Apr-2023
Former Punjab Cabinet Minister Bikram Singh Majithia on April 10 stated that he had recently received at least eight threat calls and had notified the Punjab Director General of Police (DGP).
10-Apr-2023
The Border Security Force (BSF) on April 10 recovered around 1.6 kg of narcotics wrapped in three packets near Gandhu Kilcha village along the International Border (IB) in the Ferozepur District.
10-Apr-2023
According to a study by Network Contagion Research Institute, some Khalistan supporters are using automated Twitter accounts to encourage violence and promote acts of vandalism around the world amid rising hostilities between the Indian government and followers of the Sikh religion. The report reveals that these individuals are employing elusive strategies such as deleting tweets afterward and sidestepping suspensions by praising the placement of a "device" rather than a bomb and urging for the "political assassination" of Indian officials. Furthermore, a number of Khalistani supporters are using interconnected networks of accounts to simultaneously disseminate videos and calls to action, outrunning Twitter's limited safety personnel.
10-Apr-2023
The Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee (SGPC) on April 10 announced that the Khanna Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) had been served a legal notice for supposedly associating the flags and map of the Sikh kingdom led by Maharaja Ranjit Singh and Sikh princely states with the separatist cause of Khalistan. According to the SGPC, the Khanna SSP has been accused of presenting these flags and map, which were found on the phone of aides of fugitive Waris Punjab De (WPD) chief Amritpal Singh, as evidence of separatist activities.
10-Apr-2023
Punjab Police on April 10 arrested a key member of Waris Punjab De (WPD), Papalpreet Singh from Kathunangal village in Amritsar district. Inspector General (IG) Sukhchain Singh Gill stated that Papalpreet Singh was arrested after multiple police teams carried out a special operation with assistance from the counter-intelligence wing. IG Gill further added that the search operation to locate Papalpreet Singh had been ongoing for three days, initiated by the critical information received regarding his whereabouts.
10-Apr-2023
The Indian government denied the reports in the media claiming that India has suspended trade talks with the United Kingdom (UK) following an attack on the Indian high commission by pro-Khalistani extremists. In a statement issued by the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA), it said, "We have seen the report claiming India has halted its trade deal with the UK. It is completely baseless."
09-Apr-2023
The Punjab Government on April 9 transferred Additional Director General of Police (ADGP) (Jails) B Chandra Shekhar just days after ordering an investigation into gangster Lawrence Bishnoi's jailhouse interviews.
09-Apr-2023
Police arrested two smugglers, identified as Daljit Singh alias Gudu and Binder Singh and recovered 350 kg of poppy husk kept in 21 bags from their possession at Madhopur Chowk, Fatehgarh Sahib district on April 9.
09-Apr-2023
Following the release of a video where fugitive pro-Khalistan leader Amritpal Singh called for a "Sarbat Khalsa" (a congregation of the Sikh faithful) on Baisakhi, security measures in Bathinda have been strengthened. Additional Director General of Police (ADGP) Surinder Pal Singh Parmar stated, “We have made elaborate security arrangements. We are here for the convenience of people. We want more and more people to visit the state on Baisakhi. It will send out a positive message that the situation is normal in Punjab. No restrictions have been imposed.”
09-Apr-2023
A delegation of lawyers, sent by the Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee (SGPC), has reached Dibrugarh in Assam to take up the cases of the young people jailed there after being arrested in Punjab. The SGPC has assigned the task of providing legal assistance to the group of lawyers, which comprises SGPC member and advocate Bhagwant Singh Sialka, advocate Mandeep Singh Sidhu, who is the brother of Sandeep (Deep) Singh Sidhu, and lawyer Rohit Sharma.
09-Apr-2023
Punjab Police on April 9 arrested an NRI (Non-Resident Indian) identified as Jaswinder Singh Pangli in connection with an investigation into the escape of fugitive Khalistani leader Amritpal Singh from the Hoshiarpur district. The police also confiscated significant pieces of evidence against him.
08-Apr-2023
The Punjab and Haryana High Court (HC) on April 8 emphasized that the drug problem in Punjab has reached a “dangerous height” and cannot be taken lightly. Justice Vivek Puri reiterated that drug-related offenses must be diligently investigated.
08-Apr-2023
A Nihang Sikh, part of the ongoing Quami Insaaf Morcha near YPS Chowk in Mohali, was severely injured after he was attacked by fellow Nihangs with swords following an altercation, near a park in Sector 52, near Mohali in SAS Nagar district on April 8 night. Police have arrested a Nihang Sikh identified as Nihang Mela Singh and booked eight others for attempt-to-murder, rioting, unlawful assembly and criminal conspiracy.