NIA chargesheets aide of Khalistani militants in terror conspiracy case

The National Investigation Agency (NIA) has chargesheeted a key associate of Khalistani terrorists Harwinder Singh Sandhu, alias Rinda, and Lakhbir Singh, alias Landa, in a terror conspiracy case.

The chargesheet was filed on October 21 against Gurpreet Singh, alias Gopi, of Tarn Taran in the NIA special court at Mohali.

The NIA identified the accused as an associate of foreign-based designated “individual terrorists” Rinda and Landa of the banned terrorist organisation Babbar Khalsa International (BKI).

Criminal nexus

• Gurpreet Singh, alias Gopi, of Tarn Taran is a key associate of Khalistani terrorists Harwinder Singh Sandhu, alias Rinda, and Lakhbir Singh, alias Landa, in a terror conspiracy case
• NIA investigations have established that he was involved in the RPG attack on the Sarhali police station in December 2022 and that he remained in contact with his foreign-based handlers while in the jail and even thereafter

Investigations by the anti-terror agency established his role in a conspiracy hatched by BKI terrorists to unleash terror in Punjab and other parts of the country.

As per NIA investigations, the accused was involved in the RPG attack on the Sarhali police station in December 2022. The probe revealed that he remained in contact with his foreign-based handlers while in the jail and even thereafter.

The NIA further found that Gurpreet conspired to raise funds for the BKI and its operatives in India through large-scale extortion from businessmen on the directions of Landa.

He recruited vulnerable youth for the BKI module. He also carried out recce of the targets identified by Landa, besides making attempts to eliminate those targets.

The NIA, which seized an illegal weapon from the accused’s house during a search operation in January this year, has charged him under various sections of UAPA, Arms Act etc. Further investigations into the case are going on.

Rinda is a key BKI member and Khalistani operative. “He fled to Pakistan illegally in 2018 and is living there under the patronage of ISI. He is involved in terror activities against India,” the NIA had said earlier. He was involved in “smuggling of arms, ammunition and drugs into India from Pakistan, besides recruitment of BKI operatives, committing murders, raising funds for BKI through extortion in Punjab and Maharashtra”.

Rinda was also involved in the RPG attack on the Punjab Police Intelligence Headquarters in May 2022, and was declared an “individual terrorist” in 2023 by the Union Ministry of Home Affairs.

On July 23, 2023, the NIA said it had filed a chargesheet against nine persons, including three “listed Khalistani terrorists” (Rinda, Arshdeep Singh and Landa) associated with banned outfits Babbar Khalsa International (BKI) and the Khalistan Tiger Force (KTF) in the gangster-terrorist nexus.