On Saturday, Sonipat Police said that they had arrested four accused with alleged links to pro-Khalistani outfits. They were involved in the targeted killing of one Avtar Singh Udhampur Kalan village in Morinda, Ropar, on December 8. According to the Police, they were involved in targeted killings in Punjab on the instructions of their handlers abroad and had allegedly received funding from pro-Khalistan groups. Their objective was to create an atmosphere of fear in Punjab and other parts of the country.
According to police, after the murder in Ropar, they were planning more murders in the coming days, including planning another murder in Mohali.
The Police have registered FIR under Sections 16, 17, 18, 20, 21 of Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA), Section 120-B (criminal conspiracy) of IPC, and Arms Act at Mohana police station against the accused.
The accused allegedly received funding from pro-Khalistani groups for creating an atmosphere of fear in Punjab and other parts of the country. The Police has identified the accused as Sagar alias Binni, Sunil alias Pahalwan, Jatin alias Rajesh and Surendra. They found an AK 47 assault rifle and 49 rounds along with three foreign-made pistols in their possession.
During the investigation, the Police found the four were in touch with International Sikh Youth Federation’s Lakhbir Singh Rode, who is based in Pakistan, Gujant Singh alias Janta from Australia, Hardeep Singh Nijjar and Arshdeep Singh Dala from Canada.
Rahul Sharma, Superintendent of Police, Sonipat, said they received intelligence input about three men from a village in Sonipat who were in touch with terrorists from pro-Khalistan outfits via social media platforms. Crime Branch teams arrested them during the raids. Prima Facie, the accused were involved in targeted killings in Punjab to create an atmosphere of fear. “They have carried out a murder and were planning to commit more. They received funding from abroad, and we are checking the details of their bank accounts. So far, we have found that they had received Rs 5 lakh to Rs 6 lakh from Khalistani outfits abroad,” said Sharma.
He further added it was not clear if they had planned killings around assembly elections, but they were involved in the murder that took place in December last year, and they were planning another murder close to elections. “The handlers based abroad and their hidden modules provided weapons to the accused from Mohali and Kharar. The handlers made arrangements for their accommodation vehicles and provided them with a target for the killings,” he added.
Sagar, the gang’s kingpin, was an associate of Ravinder Pughthala, a gangster who was killed in an encounter in 2017. Initially, three accused were arrested, and the fourth accused was identified during the raids. He was later arrested by the Police. Punjab Police was informed about the update, and teams were deployed to interrogate the accused.