KHALISTAN EXTREMISM MONITOR
A project of the Institute for Conflict Management
A project of the Institute for Conflict Management
India 01-Sep-2025
On September 1, the Delhi High Court granted the trial court handling the 1984 anti-Sikh riots cases four weeks to submit its report on reconstructing decades-old records concerning the acquittal of five men, including former Congress councillor Balwan Khokhar, in the killing of four Sikhs in Ghaziabad’s Raj Nagar. The bench observed that the victims’ and society’s right to a fair trial could not be undermined by missing files or flawed proceedings, and set October 10 as the next hearing date.
India 01-Sep-2025
According to sources in the Anti-Terrorism Squad (ATS), the interrogation of international gangster Sunil Kumar Meena alias Mayank Singh, revealed that sophisticated arms used by the Aman Sahu gang in Jharkhand were smuggled from Pakistan via Punjab. These weapons were linked to several extortion-related crimes, including the March attack on coal trader Bipin Mishra in Ranchi, Jharkhand.
India 02-Sep-2025
Since March 1, Punjab Police’s anti-drug campaign ‘Yudh Nashian Virudh’ has led to the registration of 17,957 First Information Reports (FIRs), the arrest of 27,796 drug smugglers, and the recovery of 1,129 kg of heroin, 384 kg of opium, 232 quintals of poppy husk, 29 kg of charas, 430 kg of ganja, 6.3 kg of ICE (crystal meth), 33 lakh intoxicant pills/tablets, and INR 12.44 crore in drug money. The six-month drive, launched under the direction of Chief Minister (CM) Bhagwant Singh Mann, combines enforcement, de-addiction, and preventive measures with the aim of making Punjab drug-free.
India 02-Sep-2025
Former member of the banned Khalistani outfit Sikhs for Justice (SFJ), Gurpreet Singh Nihang, in a recent interview with 5WH, revealed that he quit the organisation after nearly two decades, sharply criticising its leader Gurpatwant Singh Pannun for ego-driven leadership, lack of transparency, and betraying the original spirit of the movement. Nihang accused Pannun of abandoning core Khalsa values, inflating claims about the Khalistan referendum, and running the outfit in a self-serving manner while disregarding the risks faced by others. He emphasised that for him, Sikhi and Khalsa traditions held far greater significance than Pannun’s hollow pursuit of Khalistan.
India 02-Sep-2025
The Union Ministry of Home Affairs (UMHA) on September 2 announced that members of minority communities from Afghanistan, Bangladesh, and Pakistan, Hindus, Sikhs, Buddhists, Jains, Parsis, and Christians, who entered India on or before December 31, 2024, to escape religious persecution, will be allowed to stay in the country without passports or other valid travel documents. The order, issued under the newly enforced Immigration and Foreigners Act, 2025, provides relief but does not guarantee citizenship.
India 02-Sep-2025
Punjab Police on September 2 unearthed a terror module linked to Jaish-e-Mohammad (JeM) and arrested three men from Jammu and Kashmir (J&K) who were involved in a cab driver’s murder case, identified as Sahil Bashir, Bashir’s brother Aijaz Ahmed Khan, alias Wasim and Munish Singh, alias Ansh, and seized a .32 bore pistol and a car from their possession, in Mohali in Sahibzada Ajit Singh (SAS) Nagar district in Punjab.
India 02-Sep-2025
On September 2, Punjab Police, on day 185 of its “Yudh Nashian Virudh” campaign, registered 64 first information reports (FIRs), arrested 95 drug smugglers and seized 433 grams of heroin, 29 kg of poppy husk, 910 intoxicant tablets or capsules, and INR 3.5 lakh in drug money from the possession of arrested drug smugglers across Punjab.
India 02-Sep-2025
Patiala cyber cell on September 2 arrested four members of a local gang linked to an international cyber fraud racket operating in Philippines, identified as Pankaj, Arshdeep, and Manga Singh along with one unidentified person, in Patiala in Patiala district. Police said the gang supplied bank accounts and SIM cards to fraudsters abroad, facilitating scams worth over INR 40 crore.
India 02-Sep-2025
Sri Mukhtsar Sahib Police on September 2 arrested two associates of the Lawrence Bishnoi gang, identified as Gurdeep Singh, and Gursewak Singh alias Mota, and seized four .32 bore country-made pistols and one .30 bore country-made pistol, along with 10 magazines from their possession, in Sri Mukhtsar Sahib district. Preliminary investigations linked them to wanted gangsters Harjot Singh alias Neela and Jagdeep Singh alias Jagga.
India 03-Sep-2025
Islamabad Police on September 3 arrested Manshu Behal and two juveniles for opening fire outside a beauty salon-cum-academy near Khalsa College and seized a China-made Glock pistol, six live cartridges, and a motorcycle were recovered, in Amritsar district. Investigations revealed they acted on the directions of foreign-based handlers, with Behal admitting financial distress drove him to the crime.
India 03-Sep-2025
The Anti-Gangster Task Force of Punjab, in a joint operation with the Tarn Taran Police, on September 3, arrested two key associates of foreign-based terrorist Lakhbir Singh alias Landa, identified as Vikramjit Singh alias Vicky and Harpreet Singh alias Prince and seized a .32 calibre pistol, a .315 calibre pistol, and nine live cartridges from their possession, in Amritsar district. Both have a history of criminal cases, and further interrogation is underway to trace their network and handlers.
India 03-Sep-2025
Kapurthala Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) Gaurav Toora recently revealed that between January 1 and August 31, 2025, the district police registered 730 cases and arrested 861 accused in their intensified crackdown on drugs. The operations led to the recovery of over include 9.19 kg of heroin, 6.91 kg of opium, 234.3 kg of poppy husk, 516 poppy plants, 1.07 kg of intoxicant powder, 1 kg of ganja, 14 grams of ICE, and 63,676 intoxicating tablets. In addition, the police seized INR 6.72 lakh in drug money from traffickers and peddlers.
India 03-Sep-2025
On September 3, Punjab Police, on day 186 of its “Yudh Nashian Virudh” campaign, registered 56 first information reports (FIRs), arrested 83 drug smugglers and seized 631 grams of heroin, 6082 intoxicant tablets/capsules and INR 1000 drug money from the possession of arrested drug smugglers. With this, the number of total drug smugglers arrested has reached to 28,142 in 186 days.
Portugal 03-Sep-2025
Indian gangster Randeep Malik alias Randeep Singh, who is wanted by the National Investigation Agency (NIA) and linked to the Lawrence Bishnoi gang, on September 3, claimed via a Facebook post that he had ordered a shooting targeting rivals from the Romi and Prince gang in Portugal. A video of the incident in Lisbon has surfaced online, marking the first major gang war involving Indian criminals in the country. Malik, who was briefly detained by United States (US) Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) last month, is also linked to previous high-profile cases, including explosions in Chandigarh and cross-border attacks carried out in coordination with Lawrence Bishnoi’s network.
India 03-Sep-2025
On September 3, Gurmel Singh, president of the Patti block of the Congress party, was shot dead by armed assailants in Tarn Taran district. Gangsters Doni Bal, Prabh Dasuwal, Afridi Tut, and Kaushal Chowdhury later claimed responsibility in a social media post, alleging that Singh was a police informer who had provided information leading to Afridi’s arrest and was preparing to share more with their rivals.
India 03-Sep-2025
A Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) court in Mohali on September 3 issued open-ended non-bailable warrants against former Punjab Police Assistant Inspector General (AIG) Jagdip Singh, who has been declared a proclaimed offender in two disappearance cases. He is accused in the 1992 kidnapping and disappearance of Mohinder Kaur, mother of Khalistan Commando Force (KCF) chief Paramjit Singh Panjwar, and in the 1999 disappearance of Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee (SGPC) employee Aroor Singh, for which seven people were charge sheeted. A lookout circular was issued against him in 2021.
Australia 04-Sep-2025
On September 4, Austrian economist Gunther Fehlinger-Jahn, who claims to run a NATO ‘enlargement committee,’ sparked outrage in India after calling for India’s ‘dismantling into Ex-India’ and sharing a controversial map on social media site X that depicted Indian territories as part of Pakistan, Bangladesh, Nepal, and Khalistan. His account on X was later withheld in India following backlash from political leaders and netizens, many of whom dismissed him as a self-styled troll with no official ties to NATO.
India 04-Sep-2025
The Amritsar Commissionerate Police on September 4 busted a cross-border drugs and arms smuggling and Hawala racket, arrested three individuals identified as Harpreet Singh, Gurpal Singh and Ranjodh Singh, and seized 2.02 kg of heroin, four pistols and INR 3.5 lakh of Hawala money from their possession, in Amritsar in Amritsar district. Preliminary investigation revealed that the accused had links with Pakistan-based smugglers and used drones to transport consignments across the border.
Canada 04-Sep-2025
On September 4 and 5, Canadian radio network Red Frequency Modulation (FM) raised CAD 2 million in just 48 hours through a nationwide radiothon to support flood relief efforts in Punjab, with contributions from listeners in Vancouver, Calgary, and Toronto. The funds will be channelled to Sikhi Awareness Foundation (SAF) International for emergency aid, rehabilitation of displaced families, and long-term rebuilding, reflecting the deep ties of Canada’s South Asian community with Punjab.
India 05-Sep-2025
Khalistani group ‘Shaheedi Force Unit One’ of the Punjab Sovereignty Alliance, in a recent open letter, claimed responsibility for the August 10 IED blast at the Gharinda Police Station in Amritsar, describing it as a response to what it called growing repression of Sikhs in India. The group’s commander, Jassa Singh Azad, warned of more such attacks unless the alleged persecution ends, accusing authorities of targeting Sikh youth and families.