By IANS
New Delhi : With the arrest of four suspected militants of the outlawed Babbar Khalsa International (BKI), Delhi Police Friday claimed to have foiled an attempt to kill prominent Sikh religious leader, Baba Pyara Singh Paniharewala, and some others and to revive militancy in Punjab.
According to the police, sleuths of the special cell apprehended Baljeet Singh, 34, of Mohali, Bikkar Singh, 28, of Sangrur, Kulwinderjeet Singh, 33, of Ludhiana and Trilochan Singh, 45, of Panchkula a few days back from Patiala, Mahala Chowk and Sangrur in Punjab. Four pistols and 124 live cartridges were recovered from them.
“In a bid to revive militancy in Punjab, the terrorist group (whose chief is based in Pakistan) wanted to create religious discord and disharmony in Punjab by assassinating some prominent religious leaders there,” Joint Commissioner of Police (Special Cell) Karnal Singh said.
“Their immediate target was Baba Pyara Singh, based in Ropar district of Punjab,” he said.
The police said the terrorists had hatched a well-designed conspiracy and also visited Baba’s sect headquarters. After seeing the security arrangements, they planned to carry weapons in a milk container.
“They had carried out a dry run in this regard and then fixed Jan 5 for the assassination,” Singh said.
Karnal Singh said BKI chief Wadhawa Singh and Jagtar Singh Tara – both based in Pakistan and protected by Inter Services Intelligence (ISI) – had hatched a conspiracy to eliminate religious leaders after collecting funds in Germany and the US.
“Baljeet Singh, a post-graduate in history, in his interrogation revealed that he developed intimacy with Jagtar Singh Hawara, Paramjeet Singh Bheora and Tara – the trio accused of killing the then Punjab chief minister Beant Singh – before they escaped from Burail Jail in Chandigarh in January 2004,” Singh told reporters.
Hawara was also involved in the twin blasts in Delhi cinema halls. Delhi Police arrested Hawara in June 2005 and Bheora in March 2006, but Tara managed to escape to Pakistan, the police said.
“Baljeet Singh, in his interrogation, revealed that he developed intimacy with Hawara, Bheora and Tara while in Burail Jail. After their escape, Baljeet Singh remained in contact with Hawara and helped him in getting accommodation and vehicles. At the same time he also came in contact with Daya Singh Lahoria, a top militant of the Khalistan Liberation Front.
“After his release, he contacted Satnam Singh, son-in-law of Wadhawa Singh, in Germany through Shalinder Singh for support and further plan of action. He then contacted Cheema in the US and Tara in Pakistan for financial aid, arms and explosive,” Singh added.
“All these mentors of BKI started extending financial and other logistic support. In May 2007, Baljeet Singh contacted Tara and sent him a consignment of 10 pistols through the network of Lahoria.”
The police said Baljeet Singh trained his associates for assassination of Baba Pyara.
The police said Kulwinderjeet Singh, a school dropout, was involved in six bomb blast cases, including the blast near Delhi Durbar Restaurant in Connaught Place, in 1995.
“He threw hand grenade from a train near Samaipur Badli, Delhi, and is also involved in two bomb blasts cases of Haryana – one at Panipat and Sonepat – and two cases of Rajasthan – one at Sawai Man Singh Stadium and a blast in a bus in Dosa, Rajasthan,” Singh said.