KHALISTAN EXTREMISM MONITOR
A project of the Institute for Conflict Management
A project of the Institute for Conflict Management
The National Investigation Agency (NIA) will visit London to probe the pro-Khalistani protests and vandalism which took place outside the Indian High Commission last month.
According to sources, the investigating agency will record statements of a few people during its visit to Britain. Officials will also check footage of the CCTV cameras installed outside the Indian High Commission in London.
Last week, the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) allowed the NIA to take over the investigation, which was earlier under the Special Cell of the Delhi Police.
India, during talks with the UK, has expressed concerns over the protests and has claimed Khalistani activists were plotting terror activities in India.
The development comes after tricolour flying atop the Indian High Commission in London was grabbed at by a group of protesters waving Khalistani flags and chanting pro-Khalistani slogans.
The FIR was registered under relevant sections of Indian Penal Code, Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act and Prevention of Damage to Public Property Act and an investigation has been initiated in the case.
Additionally, the British Deputy High Commissioner was also summoned by the Centre, demanding an explanation over the complete absence of security during the protest.
The British High Commissioner to India, Alex
Ellis had described the incident as "disgraceful" and "totally
unacceptable".
Radical separatist Amritpal Singh was trying to build a new brand of Khalistani separatist identity in Punjab by creating a false sense of alienation and discontentment, especially among the youth, said intelligence officials a day after his arrest from Rode village in Moga district of Punjab.
Agencies view Amritpal’s entry into Punjab as part of a larger conspiracy by Pakistan ISI, in collusion with Khalistani elements in the United Kingdom, whose imprints have been found during the probe against members of Waris Punjab De in the last two months.
“The Europe and US networks of the Khalistan outfits were apparently used as a front by the Pak ISI to give it an organic face and create a false narrative to fuel separatism,” said intelligence officials.
After Amritpal has been sent to Dibrugarh jail where he is detained under the National Security Act, central agencies are likely to question him on his suspected links with Babbar Khalsa International (BKI) and Sikhs for Justice, which came out in open support of Waris Punjab De, the outfit captured by Amritpal after the sudden death of Deep Sidhu last year. Nearly fifty WPD members are behind bars, ten of them booked under the NSA and are presently lodged in Dibrugarh jail along with Amritpal.
But, neither the traditional Khalistani narrative of the banned outfits nor their existing support base was enough for Amritpal’s handlers, who were eyeing to capture the political space in Punjab and create a political-social support base to revive militancy.
This is a major concern for the central agencies which are likely to quiz him about his alleged links with UK-based Aavar Singh Khanda, allegedly a close associate of militant Jagtar Singh Tara and other overseas militants.
The Khalistani network of Amritpal allegedly sprouted after he was spotted by the Rode brothers-Jaswant Rode in Dubai where Amritpal was taking care of his father’s truck business. Jaswant is brother of Lakhbir Singh Rode of the banned Khalistan Liberation Force and International Sikh Youth Federation in Pakistan. Sources said his close links with the Khalistani outfits, brought him under the radar of UK-based BKI leaders sponsored by Pakistan’s ISI, who decided to groom him, claimed police sources. The well-oiled drug smuggling and gun-running cross-border networks that were tapping vulnerable youngsters in Punjab rallied behind Amritpal at once.
Security officials said the seeds of Amritpal's radicalisation were sown in Dubai and he is learnt to have undergone several months of training in use of gadgets and gathered technical expertise before he returned to Punjab to become the poster boy of Khalistan. A trip to Georgia before he entered the country has come under the scanner of intelligence agencies.
Central and state police agencies are likely to question Amritpal on his Dubai links, connection with Rode brothers, his wife Kirandeep Kaur’s activities and examine the suspected BKI networks and financial flows into WPD under his charge. Incidentally, Kirandeep Kaur is a UK citizen who was residing in London when she came in contact with Amritpal. In February, she took a flight to marry Amritpal in his native village in Jallupur Khera in Punjab. The investigating agencies suspect she may have been used as an overseas link to the Amritpal module that was orchestrating the pro-Khalistan narrative in Punjab. While Kirandeep has denied all allegations against her husband and herself, the sleuths are likely to explore whether any funds were routed through her to support Amritpal's activities in the country.
Amritpal is the main accused in the Ajnala
police station violence and has six FIRs against him. After Amritpal escaped
arrest in Jalandhar on March 18, he made plans to flee to Nepal using the
porous border but the tight security arrangements and timely intelligence did
not allow him to leave the country. Amritpal tried to evade arrest for as long
as possible and security sources said the fact that he moved without a mobile
phone, using VPN to avoid digital tracking in the phones he used along the way,
demonstrated that he was well-trained and used organised networks as he changed
locations from Haryana, Punjab, Uttarakhand and Uttar Pradesh besides attempts
to sneak out of the Nepal border. The central agencies will investigate whether
he had transited through Delhi and taken shelter in Rajasthan too.
Pro-Khalistan preacher Amritpal Singh, who was on the run for over a month, was arrested from Punjab's Moga, police said on Sunday. Punjab Police, which launched a massive crackdown against Amritpal and members of his outfit 'Waris Punjab De' on March 18, said he would be sent to Assam's Dibrugarh jail. The cops also urged citizens to maintain peace and harmony.
"Amritpal Singh arrested in Moga, Punjab. Further details will be shared by Punjab Police. Urge citizens to maintain peace and harmony, don't share any fake news, always verify and share," Punjab Police said on its official Twitter account.
Amritpal and his associates were booked under several criminal cases related to spreading disharmony among classes, attempting to murder, attacking police personnel, and creating obstructions in public servants' lawful discharge of duty. The stringent National Security Act (NSA) was also invoked against Singh and some of his aides.
"He is an NSA subject and will be taken to Dibrugarh," a senior police official told the news agency PTI.
Nine of Amritpal's aides -- Daljit Singh Kalsi, Papalpreet Singh, Kulwant Singh Dhaliwal, Varinder Singh Johal, Gurmeet Singh Bukkanwala, Harjit Singh, Bhagwant Singh, Basant Singh and Gurinderpal Singh Aujla -- are currently lodged in Dibrugarh jail.
Despite being sighted in several CCTV footage and photos with changed appearances at many places, including Patiala, Kurukshetra and Delhi, Amritpal Singh managed to remain elusive for over a month.
While on the run, two videos and one audio clip of Amritpal surfaced on social media. In one of his two videos, which surfaced on March 30, he had asserted that he was not a fugitive and would soon appear.
The pro-Khalistan preacher had claimed that he was not like those who would flee the country.
In February this year, Amritpal Singh and his supporters -- some of them brandishing swords and guns -- broke through barricades and barged into the Ajnala Police Station on the outskirts of the Amritsar city, clashing with police for the release of one of Amritpal's aides.
After the incident, in which six policemen including a Superintendent of Police rank officer had suffered injuries, the Bhagwant Mann-led Punjab government faced severe flak and was accused of kowtowing to extremists.
Earlier this week, Amritpal's wife Kirandeep Kaur was stopped from boarding a flight to London at the Sri Guru Ram Dass International Airport in Amritsar. She was questioned by the immigration authorities and some other officials for more than three hours and thereafter, asked to return along with some relatives who had come to see her off at the airport.
According to reports, she was stopped at the airport as there was a lookout circular (LoC) issued against her, however, there was no official word on it.
The National Investigation Agency (NIA) has taken over the probe into the violent demonstration by pro-Khalistan protesters outside the Indian high commission in London last month and is likely to send a team there “very soon” to investigate a larger conspiracy, people familiar with the development said on Monday.
On March 19, the national flag at the Indian high commission in London was pulled down during a protest by pro-Khalistan activists. Videos of the incident showed several protesters carrying the yellow and black Khalistan flag and calling for radical Sikh preacher and Khalistan sympathiser Amritpal Singh to be “freed”. The videos showed one of the protesters clambering on to a balcony and pulling down the Indian flag from a pole at the front of the high commission to cheers from the other men. British policemen arrived on the scene and prevented the protestors from approaching an entrance of the Indian high commission. The protesters shouted slogans and abuse at Indian officials within, the videos showed.
The Delhi Police, which registered a case under the Unlawful Activities Prevention Act (UAPA), are currently investigation the case. However, after a meeting with UK representatives last week, the ministry of home affairs (MHA) decided to hand over the probe to the federal anti-terror probe agency, those aware of the matter said.
The Centre had amended the NIA act in August 2019, empowering the agency to investigate terror activities against Indians and Indian interests abroad apart from cyber-crimes and human trafficking.
Union home secretary Ajay Kumar Bhalla and other top officials in India’s security apparatus last Wednesday conveyed their concerns on the misuse of the UK’s asylum status by pro-Khalistan elements to carry out terrorist activities in India and raised the issue of attack on Indian embassy during the fifth India-UK Home Affairs Dialogue (HAD) in Delhi. The dialogue was attended by Permanent Secretary, Home Office, Sir Matthew Rycroft from the UK side.
The
ministry of external affairs (MEA) had said last month - “We expect host
governments will take action to identify and prosecute all those involved and
take all necessary measures to prevent the recurrence of such incidents. We
would hope host governments provide full and adequate protection to our missions
as well as to the personnel working there”.
Prominent pro-Khalistan leader Amritpal Singh,
has categorically stated that he wants Khalistan and Khalistan is his ideology,
as it will end suffering of the Sikh people.
Amritpal who heads Waris Punjab de, in a media
massage says, “I want Khalistan. Khalistan is my ideology. It is our birth
right to think independently. My critics have a right to their opinion and I
have mine.”
He added that all men around him carry licensed
weapons.
The Indian police and agencies have massive
search operations in all over India to trap the Waris Punjab De Khalistan
leader.
Amritpal recently broke into a police station
to free a close associate. In discussing Sikh grievances, he has called for the
“freedom” of Punjab, saying in media interviews that Khalistan will “end
suffering.”
Calls for Khalistan resonate with some Sikhs
overseas.
In March, Amritpal’s image was projected on a
screen towering over a sea of supporters in New York’s Times Square.
Till now, BSF has seized 40 kg of heroin, 7 pistols along with ammunition. “The smugglers and anti-national elements have reduced the time of the movement of drones in the Indian territory making it difficult for troops to shoot them down, said AK Vidyarthi, DIG (BSF)
As many as 10 incidents of drone intrusion into the Indian territory at the Punjab border with Pakistan have been reported in the past month, with Border Security Force (BSF) troops managing to capture only one.
According to BSF officials, the
anti-national elements have reduced the timing of the movement of drones into
Indian territory in the recent past, making it difficult for the jawans to
shoot them down.
“The time of movement of drones into the Indian territory has drastically decreased in the past few weeks, due to which we are facing problems in downing them,” said AK Vidyarthi, deputy inspector general (DIG).
According to BSF, from March 19 to April 15, 10 incidents were reported in which the drones sneaked into the Indian territory from the Pakistan side, dropping their consignment of arms and drugs. Out of the total incidents, one black-coloured drone (quadcopter-DJI Matrice) was captured in Rajatal village of Amritsar district on March 27.
Incidentally, March 27 was also the busiest for the BSF troops. The security personnel apprehended two suspects along with the recovery of a drone, a pistol and 10kg of heroin in four separate incidents reported along the India-Pakistan border.
Three incidents were related to the intrusion of drones in the Amritsar sector. In the fourth incident in the Fazilka district, two Pakistani intruders had allegedly retreated after throwing a packet of drugs and weapons consignments into the Indian territory.
In total, BSF seized around 40 kg of heroin and seven pistols allegedly dropped by the drones in these 10 reported incidents.
BSF officials said this year, its troops have noticed around 23 intrusions of drones into Indian territory. From January 1 to March 18, around 13 incidents of drone intrusions were reported, out of which it managed to shoot down drones on seven occasions.
However, the rate of shooting down drones has drastically come down in the last month.
Anti-drone technology
BSF has been running a trial of an anti-drone technology for the last one-and-a-half-year, but this technology, as per its officials, works at a particular frequency and has not been found to be effective.
A senior BSF official, who did
not wish to be named, said, “The drones which have been captured were shot down
by our jawans, who have been given special training. The technology we are
using is not very much effective. Pakistan-based smugglers are very shrewd and
are working in collusion with the country’s intelligence agency (ISI) and
China. Most of the drones being used by Pakistani smugglers are assembled. They
are not using drones made by companies, which have fixed frequencies. The
possibility of these assembled drones, which fly at varying frequencies, being
detected in our anti-drone technology is very less. We need an effective
anti-drone technology to tackle the threat.”
8 drones shot down this year
This year, the BSF has captured
eight drones in total. Last year, BSF shot down 23 drones used for smuggling
drugs, arms, ammunition and explosives from across the border.
Last year, besides announcing ₹50,000 reward to the ‘drone hitting party’ and ₹1 lakh to the informers, the BSF took several measures to tackle the drone threats at the Punjab border.
Punjab governor Banwarilal Purohit had also conducted back-to-back visits at the Punjab border and asked the security agencies to increase their coordination to tackle the drone threats.
According to a senior BSF official, who didn’t wish to be named, due to the absence of an ‘effective anti-drone technology’, most of the drones manage to retreat, either after dropping consignment or reconnaissance.
“Many times, our jawans rely on
the buzzing sound of the drone. They open fire towards the sound, but chances
of them hitting the intended target are very low as drones can’t be seen in the
dark,” he said.
On Sunday, 3kg of heroin seized
The BSF troopers recovered 3kg of heroin dropped by a Pakistani drone near Dhanoe Kalan village in Amritsar on Saturday night.
The BSF jawans opened fire
towards the drone, which had sneaked into the Indian territory from the
Pakistan side, but it had managed to retreat after dropping the consignment.
GFX
Tacking the menace
Total intrusions this year: 23
Drones shot down this year: 8
Drones captured last year: 23
Recent major seizures involving drones:
April 16: 3-kg heroin seized near
Dhanoe Kalan village in Amritsar sector
April 15: 3-kg heroin near
Mullakot village seized in Amritsar sector
April 13: 4.5-kg heroin seized in
Mansa district
April 4: 12-kg heroin seized in
Tarn Taran and Amritsar district.
March 27: Three drone intrusions,
BSF apprehends two suspects along with recovery of drone, a pistol and 10kg of
heroin in four separate incidents
March 27: 6.2kg of heroin seized
by BSF personnel near Toor village in Amritsar
March 24: Five pistols, ten
magazines and 91 live rounds recovered in the Gurdaspur sector
March 10: Hexacopter gunned down
in the Gurdaspur sector, one AK series rifle, two magazines & 40 rounds
recovered
Punjab police have dismissed as "diversionary" claims by banned organisations like Khalistan Tiger Force and Sikhs for Justice taking responsibility for the killings of four soldiers at a military station here on April 12.
"The investigations so far suggest it to be an internal issue (of the army). The stolen weapon (5.56 Insas rifle) used in the offence has been recovered with spent cartridges. So, the claims by the Khalistan Tiger Force and the Sikhs For Justice are hollow and more to hog the media limelight," additional DGP Surinderpal Singh Parmar said on Saturday.
The Insas rifle was missing from the base since April 9. Police have also denied having received a report on the fingerprints found on the rifle. Parallel army and police investigations are on, without any arrests so far, and the military station itself remains highly barricaded.
The
FIR suggests two men in white kurta-pyjamas came out of the jawans' barracks,
one holding an Insas and other an axe. They fled into a forest close to the
military station. Later, 19 empty shells and the rifle were recovered along with
bullets by the Punjab police.
The government on Wednesday conveyed its concerns on the misuse of the UK’s asylum status by pro-Khalistani elements to carry out terrorist activities in India while asking British authorities to increase “monitoring” and take “appropriate proactive” action during the fifth India-UK Home Affairs Dialogue (HAD) held in Delhi.
The government also raised the issue of the security breach last month at the Indian high commission in London.
Union home secretary Ajay Kumar Bhalla led the talks on India’s behalf while the UK delegation was led by permanent secretary, home office, Sir Matthew Rycroft, with senior officers of both countries present.
“During the meeting both sides reviewed the ongoing cooperation and identified further steps that can be taken to explore opportunities and synergies in advancing cooperation in counterterrorism, cyber security and global supply chains, drug trafficking, migration, extradition, anti-India activities in the UK including pro-Khalistan extremism, among other issues,” a statement issued by the ministry of home affairs (MHA) said.
“The Indian side specifically conveyed its concerns on the misuse of UK’s asylum status by pro-Khalistani elements to aid and abet terrorist activities in India and requested better cooperation with the UK and increased monitoring of UK-based pro-Khalistan extremists and take appropriate proactive action,” the MHA said.
India’s concerns, the ministry added, over the breach of security at the Indian high commission were also emphasised.
In retaliation for a violent protest at the Indian mission in London on March 19, to which London police reacted late, the Indian government had removed barricades placed outside the UK mission at Shantipath in the Chanakyapuri diplomatic enclave and British high commissioner Alex Ellis’s residence at Rajaji Marg.
The protests by pro-Khalistan groups outside Indian mission in London, which began soon after Punjab Police launched a statewide manhunt for radical preacher Amritpal Singh and his followers on March 18, have emerged as a fresh irritant in India-UK relations.
The protesters shouted anti-India slogans and waved Khalistan flags, while Indian officials and others draped a massive national flag on the roof of the mission. Another large Indian flag was put up outside the building.
The external affairs ministry had called in the most senior UK diplomat in New Delhi , Christina Scott, after the violence at the Indian mission to register a strong protest and to demand action against those involved in the vandalism.
The MHA said on Wednesday that the HAD meeting “concluded with both sides expressing satisfaction with the ongoing partnership and agreeing to deepen bilateral engagement and maintain the momentum for enhanced security cooperation between the two countries”.
As reported by HT last month, Amritpal Singh’s main handler Avtar Singh Khanda is also based in the UK.
Besides, several other pro-Khalistan leaders are based in London and have been carrying out anti-India activities in association with Pakistan.
The
Indian government has from time to time shared with the British government a
list of several individuals engaged in terrorist activities from its soil.
The Punjab Government today informed the Punjab and Haryana High Court that pro-khalistani Amritpal Singh’s close aide Daljit Singh Kalsi, who has been detained under the National Security Act (NSA), was helping the radical preacher to profess radical ideology and wage war against the state for separate Khalistan.
The high court was hearing petitions, including those of Kalsi’s wife, who had alleged her husband has been illegally confined by Punjab Police and sent to Dibrugarh central jail in Assam without a valid reason and proper procedure.
Relatives of other detainees Gurmit Singh, Kulwant Singh, Varinder Singh Fauji, Bhagwant Singh (alias Pradhanmantri Bajeke) and Basant Singh have filed petitions in the court to quash the detention orders.
The
government also told the Punjab and Haryana High Court that Sarabjit alias
Daljit Singh Kalsi was detained under the National Security Act and the
allegation he has been kept illegally is wrong. He was arrested after following
the due process of law. The next hearing date is fixed for April 24.
Khalistan supporter and Waris Punjab De chief Amritpal Singh underwent eye surgery in Georgia to look exactly like Khalistani militant Jarnail Singh Bhindranwale before coming back to India in 2022, India Today reported on Friday.
The aides of Amritpal Singh, who are currently in Assam’s Dibrugarh jail, made this revelation, the report quoted sources in the intelligence agency as saying.
Amritpal Singh's aides told India Today sources that the Khalistani commander was in Georgia for two years (from 20/6/22 to 19/8/22) for eye surgery.
The fugitive leader is on the run after the Punjab Police launched an operation against him and his aides. He is the chief of Waris Punjab De, a pressure group demanding Khalistan.
The police had earlier said that a total of 114 arrests have been made in the case so far, and there is a strong suspicion of ISI angle and foreign funding.
Recently, Singh was spotted on a Delhi street where he was seen strolling in East Delhi without wearing a turban, the CCTV footage showed.
Once a truck driver in Dubai, Singh has been styling himself on the lines of terrorist Jarnail Singh Bhindranwale, who was killed during Operation Blue Star in 1984, by copying his attire, mannerisms, carrying an arrow, keeping a battery of armed bodyguards and taking the shield of religion.
Singh is also alleged to have links with Lakhbir Singh Rode, head of the International Sikh Youth Federation who is sought for trial in India and wanted in cases of Arms Smuggling (including RDX explosive), conspiracy to attack government leaders in New Delhi and spreading hatred in Punjab.
The Punjab Police recently released multiple images of Amritpal Singh in various poses — with and without a beard — so that he can be apprehended even if he entirely changes his appearance.
Meanwhile, he was also recently trying to enter
Amritsar and has been confined to a radius of 10 to 12 kilometres after he
escaped from Hoshiarpur. However, Amritpal in his recent video message has said
that he will not surrender.