KHALISTAN EXTREMISM MONITOR
A project of the Institute for Conflict Management
A project of the Institute for Conflict Management
India 12-Aug-2025
Border Security Force (BSF) troops on August 12 recovered three small packets of heroin weighing 1.649 kg and a large packet containing two pistols from fields near Bhakra village in Ferozepur district.
India 12-Aug-2025
Border Security Force (BSF) troops on August 12 recovered one packet of heroin weighing 609 grams from fields near Daoke village in Amritsar district.
India 12-Aug-2025
Punjab Finance Minister Harpal Singh Cheema, on August 12 in Chandigarh, said that over 5,000 drug-related cases were registered in a year through the ‘Safe Punjab’ WhatsApp chatbot, launched in August 2024 under the ‘Yudh Nashian Virudh’ anti-drug drive. The portal has become a key intelligence source, enabling major seizures and thousands of arrests under the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act.
Canada 12-Aug-2025
According to sources, Canada’s Conservative Party has urged Prime Minister (PM) Mark Carney’s government to designate the Lawrence Bishnoi gang as a terrorist organisation, citing rising shootings and extortion threats against the South Asian community in British Columbia (BC), Alberta, and Ontario. Conservative public safety critic Frank Caputo said the gang’s activities meet the criminal code definition of terrorism, allowing authorities to seize assets and impose harsher penalties. The demand follows two recent shooting incidents at Bollywood actor Kapil Sharma’s café in Surrey, allegedly claimed by the Bishnoi gang.
India 12-Aug-2025
Punjab Police on August 12 busted a terror module of Pakistan’s Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI)-backed Babbar Khalsa International (BKI), arresting two operatives, Ritik Naroliya and Sonu Kumar alias Kali, along with three juveniles, recovering a hand grenade, a .30 bore pistol with two live cartridges, and two empty shells, from Tonk and Jaipur districts of Rajasthan. The module, run by foreign-based gangsters Mannu Agwan, Gopi Nawanshehria, and Zeeshan Akhtar under the directions of Pakistan-based BKI operative Harwinder Singh alias Rinda, was tasked with carrying out grenade attacks ahead of Independence Day.
United States 12-Aug-2025
On August 12, three people were killed in Florida when an 18-wheeler truck driven by Harjinder Singh, an asylum seeker from Tarn Taran, Punjab, made an illegal U-turn and collided with a minivan on the Florida Turnpike in Florida in the United States (US). Singh, who entered the US via the illegal ‘dunki route’ and later obtained work authorisation under the Biden administration, now faces three counts of vehicular homicide, with possible decades in prison and subsequent deportation. The case has reignited debate over immigration loopholes, alleged misuse of the ‘Khalistan card’ for asylum, and its implications for thousands of Punjabi truckers in the US.
India 12-Aug-2025
On August 12, Punjab Police and intelligence agencies detained vlogger Amrik Singh from Turna village in Lohian, Jalandhar district, for over 24 hours in connection with his YouTube channel ‘Walk with Turna’ and his December 2024 visit to Pakistan. His wife, Manpreet Kaur, stated that their phones were seized for investigation and the family was initially unaware of his whereabouts. Singh was later released following intervention by local leaders.
United States 13-Aug-2025
According to experts, the United States (US) has long sought to position India as a frontline counterweight to China through the Quadrilateral Security Dialogue (QUAD). However, India has resisted being drawn into a direct confrontation, constrained by its strategic and economic considerations. This reluctance reportedly frustrated Washington, contributing to a gradual downturn in ties that the Donald Trump administration has now escalated, allegedly by backing anti-India elements such as Khalistani terrorist Gurpatwant Singh Pannun. Analysts argue that India must enhance defence self-reliance and pursue a cautious multi-alignment strategy to balance relations with both the US and China while avoiding entanglement in their rivalry.
India 13-Aug-2025
Border Security Force (BSF) troops, in a joint operation with Punjab Police, on August 13, recovered a packet of heroin weighing 600 grams and a drone from fields near Wan village in Tarn Taran district. The seized drone was identified as a DJI Air 3S model.
India 13-Aug-2025
Punjab Police on August 13 busted a narcotics and arms smuggling network by arresting five individuals identified as Vinay Kumar, Major Singh, Kulwinder Singh, Gurpreet Singh, and Gagandeep Singh, and seizing 1.50 kg of heroin and seven .32-bore pistols from their possession in Jalandhar district.
India 13-Aug-2025
Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) spokesperson Baltej Pannu on August 13 revealed that since March 1, Punjab Police have registered 16,400 First Information Reports (FIRs) and arrested 25,646 individuals in drug-related cases, seizing 1,059 kilograms of heroin, 366 kilograms of opium, 215 quintals of poppy husk, 32.35 lakh intoxicant pills and tablets, and INR 12.32 crore in drug money, across Punjab.
India 13-Aug-2025
According to reports, more than a month after the murder of Abohar businessman Sanjay Verma, the three main shooters—identified as Shakti, Rajinder alias Billa, and Jaskaran alias Katta—remain absconding, with the Lawrence Bishnoi gang suspected of facilitating their escape to Nepal. Punjab Police have so far arrested seven individuals linked to the case. A Special Investigation Team (SIT), constituted on July 12, is probing possible extortion motives and alleged international links, including foreign remittances traced to suspects’ accounts.
India 14-Aug-2025
Punjab Police on August 14 foiled a Pakistan-backed conspiracy by arresting two Babbar Khalsa International (BKI) operatives and seizing two hand grenades, a Beretta 9mm pistol, and ammunition, in Ferozepur district. Police stated that the operatives were working under the directions of terrorist Harwinder Singh alias Rinda and Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI)-backed handlers based in Pakistan, the United Kingdom (UK), the United States (US), and Europe.
India 14-Aug-2025
Punjab Police’s Anti-Gangster Task Force (AGTF) on August 14 arrested two most-wanted operatives of the Lawrence Bishnoi gang, identified as Akshay Delu and Ankit Bishnoi alias Kakkar, and seized an Austrian-made 9 mm Glock pistol along with six live cartridges from their possession, near Shambhu village in Patiala district. The Police revealed that the duo, wanted in over 15 heinous crime cases across Punjab, Delhi, Rajasthan, and Gujarat, were operating under the directions of foreign-based handlers Anmol Bishnoi and Arzoo Bishnoi, and that they had fled to Nepal after earlier crimes and returned to Punjab on their handlers’ instructions to execute a sensational attack.
India 14-Aug-2025
Punjab Police on August 14 revealed that drug smuggler Gurnam Singh had been placed under preventive detention for one year under the Prevention of Illicit Traffic in Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (PIT-NDPS) Act in Bathinda district. Officials stated that Singh, involved in multiple drug trafficking cases, had earlier been arrested with 250 grams, 2 kg, and 400 grams of heroin in separate incidents.
India 14-Aug-2025
On August 14, Additional Director General of Police (ADGP) (Crime) and Supervising Officer for Kapurthala, L.K. Yadav, chaired a special meeting at Police Lines in Kapurthala district, where he directed officers from all 15 police stations and eight outposts to enforce a strict zero-tolerance policy against narcotics.
Canada 14-Aug-2025
According to sources, extortion and targeted violence against South Asian businesses in Canada is on the rise, with the latest example being two gunfire attacks on Kap’s Café, owned by comedian Kapil Sharma and his wife Ginni Chatrath, in Surrey. On August 7, the café was sprayed with at least 25 bullets and a Molotov cocktail-like device was recovered, less than a month after a similar shooting on July 10. The August attack was claimed by Goldy Dhillon of the Lawrence Bishnoi gang, while the July assault was linked to Harjit Singh Laddi, an alleged Babbar Khalsa International (BKI) fugitive. Police say these incidents highlight the growing reach of transnational gangs, while political leaders in British Columbia (BC), Alberta, and Ontario have urged Ottawa to designate the Bishnoi gang as a terrorist organisation to strengthen enforcement.
India 14-Aug-2025
The Intelligence Wing of the State Special Operation Cell (SSOC) on August 14 arrested two individuals, identified as Harpreet Singh alias Battu, and Gulshan Singh alias Nandu, and seized two bombs, a pistol and some live cartridges from their possession, in Ferozepur district. Based on information provided by them, the Police recovered two more pistols and 10 live cartridges on August 16.
India 15-Aug-2025
Police on August 15 arrested three persons for defacing the residence of Mehal Kalan Member of Legislative Assembly (MLA) Kulwant Singh Pandori with Khalistan Referendum graffiti, identified as Gurmeet Singh alias Todi, Gursewak Singh alias Mani, and Kirpa Singh, and seized a motorcycle used in the crime, two empty spray cans, one full spray can, five mobile phones, and two robes typically worn by Nihang Singhs, in Mahal Khurd village in Barnala district. Initial investigations revealed that Surinder Singh, a United States (US)-based resident, had funded the act by sending INR 20,000 and radicalised the accused through social media.
India 15-Aug-2025
On August 15, pro-Khalistani graffiti was found on the house of Mehal Kalan Member of Legislative Assembly (MLA) Kulwant Pandori and at a nearby bus stand in Mehal Kalan village, Barnala district. Police registered a case after CCTV footage showed two men painting the slogans.