KHALISTAN EXTREMISM MONITOR
A project of the Institute for Conflict Management
A project of the Institute for Conflict Management
02-Nov-2025
On November 3, journalist and Washington Post columnist Rana Ayyub filed a complaint at Kopar Khairane police station in Navi Mumbai, Maharashtra, after receiving multiple WhatsApp threat calls and messages on the evening of November 2. The caller allegedly demanded that she write a column on the 1984 anti-Sikh riots glorifying Indira Gandhi’s assassins and threatened to attack her and her father if she refused. Ayyub stated that the caller knew her address and used a WhatsApp profile featuring gangster Lawrence Bishnoi, currently jailed in Gujarat. The calls reportedly originated from a Canadian number claiming links to a “Khalsa group.”
02-Nov-2025
A youth, identified as Jasdeep Singh alias Deep Cheema, was shot dead by two motorcycle-borne assailants near the grain market on the Dera Baba Nanak road in Gurdaspur district on November 2. Soon after the incident, fugitive gangster Harry Chatha claimed responsibility in a social media post, stating, ‘Anybody who works against us will meet the same fate. Deep Cheema was an acquaintance of Donny Bal, so we killed him.’ Donny Bal is also a gangster active in the area. According to police, the incident stems from ongoing turf wars in Batala, with rising hostility between the Harry Chatha and Donny Bal gangs.
01-Nov-2025
Captain Harcharan Singh Rode, elder brother of Khalistani terrorist Jarnail Singh Bhindranwale, passed away at the age of 90 in Moga district on November 1. Then serving as a Subedar Major in the Indian Army’s 61 Engineers Regiment, Rode was summoned to the Golden Temple on June 7, 1984, during Operation Bluestar to identify Bhindranwale.
01-Nov-2025
The Anti-Gangster Task Force (AGTF), in a joint operation with Bathinda Police, on November 1 arrested a wanted gangster, Ranjit Singh alias Sapp, and recovered a .32 bore pistol with four live cartridges in Bathinda district. Punjab Director General of Police (DGP) Gaurav Yadav said preliminary investigations revealed that Sapp is a close associate of gangster Rammi Machana and was wanted in two criminal cases. Earlier, police had seized 130 grams of heroin, a 9 mm country-made pistol with six live cartridges, and a .12 bore pistol from his residence, where his mother, Paramjit Kaur, was arrested while he had managed to escape.
01-Nov-2025
Mansa Police on November 1 arrested the third accused in the October 28 firing incident linked to an extortion attempt at a shop in Mansa, identified as Baljinder Singh, in Rupnagar district. Police said he had provided shelter to the two suspects previously arrested in the case.
01-Nov-2025
The National Investigation Agency (NIA) informed the Chandigarh District Court that 26 witnesses in the 2024 Sector 10 grenade attack case face serious threats to their lives. The NIA stated that the case involves members of the banned Babbar Khalsa International (BKI) and other high-risk operatives. The court accepted the request, ordering that witness safety be prioritized and their identities kept confidential as the trial proceeds under special supervision.
01-Nov-2025
In the eight months since the launch of the anti-drug campaign “Yudh Nashian Virudh” on March 1, 2025, Punjab Police have registered 23,164 FIRs and arrested 34,727 drug smugglers, leading to the recovery of 1,512 kg of heroin. Additionally, police have seized 533 kg of opium, 260 quintals of poppy husk, 35 kg of charas, 523 kg of ganja, 15 kg of ICE, 39 lakh intoxicant pills and tablets, and INR 13.45 crore in drug money.
01-Nov-2025
On November 1, Punjab Police, on day 245 of its “Yudh Nashian Virudh” campaign, registered 39 first information reports (FIRs), arrested 43 drug smugglers and seized 4.6 kg of heroin, 298 intoxicant pills and INR 12, 700 drug money from the possession of arrested persons, across the state.
01-Nov-2025
Punjab Congress president and Ludhiana Member of Parliament (MP) Amarinder Singh Raja Warring on November 1 criticized the state government’s handling of law and order, alleging that “gang wars have already started in Punjab,” with criminal groups vying for dominance while the police and government remain “silent spectators.” Expressing serious concern, he said the current atmosphere of fear surpasses that of the state’s militancy era, warning that gangs are killing people “with impunity” and openly claiming responsibility to aid extortion and ransom operations.
01-Nov-2025
On November 1, the officiating Jathedar of the Akal Takht, Giani Kuldip Singh Gargaj, paid tribute to the victims of the November 1984 Sikh “genocide,” stating that the Sikh community continues to await justice. He said most of those responsible were never arrested, and several senior Congress leaders remain free even today. Calling the tragedy a “dark blot” on a nation that prides itself on democracy, he emphasized that the victims’ families are still waiting for justice.
01-Nov-2025
Akal Takht’s officiating Jathedar, Giani Kuldip Singh Gargaj, on November 1, stated that Bollywood actor Amitabh Bachchan remains “unexonerated” in the eyes of the Sikh community over allegations related to the 1984 Sikh genocide, as the charges were never thoroughly investigated. Referring to the recent controversy over Punjabi singer-actor Diljit Dosanjh touching Bachchan’s feet during a TV show, Jathedar Gargaj said such actions hurt the sentiments of the Sikh community.
01-Nov-2025
An Italy-based NRI, Malkeet Singh was shot dead by two unidentified assailants while working in his fields with his father in Dhariwal village in Amritsar district on November 1. Police have named Bikram Singh of the same village among two suspects in the case. Bikram, previously arrested for the 2018 grenade blast at Nirankari Bhawan in Rajasansi, was released on bail two years later.
31-Oct-2025
The Amritsar Commissionerate Police on October 31 arrested seven arms smugglers, including one juvenile, identified as Shamsher Singh alias Sima, Amandeep Singh alias Bobby, Balwinder Singh alias Kaka, Gurdev Singh, Karanpreet Singh, and Harman Singh, and seized 15 sophisticated pistols — nine Glock 9mm and six .30-bore pistols — from their possession, in Amritsar district. Preliminary investigations revealed that the group was in contact with a Pakistan-based handler through social media and was involved in procuring and supplying illegal weapons across Punjab.
31-Oct-2025
The Counter Intelligence wing in Bathinda, in a joint operation with the district police, on October 31 arrested three operatives of the banned Khalistani outfit Sikhs For Justice (SFJ), identified as Navjot Singh alias Jota, Gurpreet Singh, and Harjinder Singh, for writing pro-Khalistan slogans on school walls in Bhisiana and Mananwala villages of Bathinda district. Police recovered four mobile phones and a dongle from their possession. Preliminary investigations revealed that the accused painted inflammatory slogans intended to incite public unrest and promote anti-national sentiments. Evidence also suggests they were receiving foreign funding for these activities. The slogans had appeared on the walls of Kendriya Vidyalaya in Bhisiana on the night of October 26-27and another school in Mananwala on the night of October 19–20.
31-Oct-2025
Mansa Police on October 31 arrested two persons, identified as Gursahib Singh and Ramanpreet Singh, for their involvement in a firing incident at a pesticide shop on October 28, and recovered two pistols (.32 bore and .30 bore), nine cartridges, and six bullet shells from their possession, in Mansa district. During the arrest, Gursahib reportedly opened fire at the police team, prompting retaliation in which he sustained a bullet injury to his leg.
31-Oct-2025
On October 31, Punjab Police, on day 244 of its “Yudh Nashian Virudh” campaign, registered 59 first information reports (FIRs), arrested 77 drug smugglers and seized 3.3 kg of heroin, 5 kg of opium and 674 intoxicant pills from the possession of arrested persons, across the state.
31-Oct-2025
Investigations by the National Investigation Agency (NIA) revealed that foreign-based operatives of the Khalistani terror group Babbar Khalsa International (BKI) have been exploiting family ties and other vulnerabilities to recruit Punjabi youths into the outfit. “All the foreign handlers of BKI exploit family ties, lure youths with money, and involve them in anti-India activities,” a senior NIA official said on October 31. Over the past 10 months, at least a dozen such cases have surfaced. The revelation emerged during the probe into the BKI-orchestrated rocket-propelled grenade (RPG) attack on the Qila Lal Singh police station in Batala in Gurdaspur district. While 11 accused have been chargesheeted, the NIA is still tracking 11 others involved in the case.
31-Oct-2025
The Border Security Force (BSF) on October 31 arrested an arms smuggler and seized a pistol along with six live rounds from his possession near Dana Mandi in Dera Baba Nanak, Gurdaspur district.
31-Oct-2025
The Border Security Force (BSF) on October 31 seized 16 live rounds and a sword in Maboke village in Firozpur district
30-Oct-2025
On October 30, Punjab Police, on day 243 of its “Yudh Nashian Virudh” campaign, registered 68 first information reports (FIRs), arrested 76 drug smugglers and seized 2.3 kg of heroin and INR1.51 lakhs drug money from the possession of arrested persons, across the state.