KHALISTAN EXTREMISM MONITOR
A project of the Institute for Conflict Management
A project of the Institute for Conflict Management
The National Investigation Agency (NIA) Friday froze the immovable assets of Surat Singh, an alleged key aide of Pakistan-based Sikh separatists, in a 2021 case related to a motorcycle-borne explosion in Punjab — a bid to destroy the financial infrastructure behind narco terrorism in India.
The blast took place on 15 September that year in a Bajaj Platina bike in Jalalabad.
According to the NIA, Singh is a key aide of Habib Khan alias ‘Doctor’ and designated terrorist Lakhveer Singh alias ‘Rode’. He is a resident of Mahatam Nagar in Punjab.
“The property of Surat Singh has been frozen under the provisions of the NDPS Act 1985,” the NIA said in a statement Friday.
In this case, the NIA has also chargesheeted Khan and Lakhveer Singh, along with Surat Singh.
“The NIA investigations have revealed that Habib Khan and Rode had collaborated with Surat Singh and other associates in India to create a terror gang in Punjab with the aim of perpetrating IED blasts and operating a narco-terror racket to destabilise the region,” the probe agency said.
According to the agency’s investigations so far, Surat Singh has been identified as an important agent of this terror network involved in smuggling narcotics, explosives, arms and ammunition from Pakistan.
“Surat Singh used encrypted communication channels such as WhatsApp, along with fake IDs and virtual numbers, to facilitate the logistical and financial aspects of terrorist activities as an overground worker (OGW) of the naco-terror network, as per NIA findings. In association with other accused individuals, he had provided support for the execution of criminal conspiracies on the directions of Pak-based handlers,” the NIA statement said.
The case was first registered under sections of the Explosives Act at the Police Station City Jalalabad in Punjab’s Fazilka on 16 September, 2021. The NIA took over the investigation and registered another case on 1 October that year.
According to the NIA, this terror module had also set ablaze a car and some shops in Ferozepur city before the motorcycle explosion. The probe revealed that eight tiffin bombs were received by the other accused Balwinder alias Binder Singh and Sukhwinder Singh along with heroin and cash.
On 15 September that year, Binder and Sukhwinder did a recce of a crowded marketplace in Jalalabad to carry out the explosion. The tiffin bomb placed on the motorcycle did not go off at the designated time, but exploded when Birender went to retrieve the vehicle. He was killed on the spot.