Federal agencies, in collaboration with the Interpol, on Friday brought dreaded Khalistani terrorist Tarsem Singh, the brother of Canada-based Babbar Khalsa International (BKI) leader Lakhbir Landa, to India after completing extradition formalities in the UAE. He was taken into custody upon arrival by the National Investigation Agency (NIA).
Singh, officials in central agencies said, is one of the key members of BKI’s terror activities in India, including planning the Rocket Propelled Grenade (RPG) attack at the Punjab Police intelligence headquarters in Mohali in May 2022.
Terming it a major success against the pro-Khalistan terror network, NIA said in a statement that “Singh, a resident of Tarn Taran in Punjab and the real brother of designated terrorist Lakhbir Landa, had a non-bailable warrant (NBW) of arrest against him since June 2023.”
“He was a key member of BKI and an important terror node of designated terrorists Harwinder Singh Rinda (based in Pakistan) and Landa (based in Canada) in the UAE,” the agency added.
The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) said Singh was geolocated in the UAE, following which an NIA security mission travelled there to bring him. Both the agencies coordinated with Interpol in Abu Dhabi for the return.
A red notice had been issued against him in November last year and he was picked up by authorities there in the same month.
“Eventually, on Friday, he was extradited from the UAE to India in adherence to Interpol’s due processes,” NIA said.
Singh, according to NIA, was “actively involved in arranging and providing terror funds to India-based associates of Rinda and Landa. He was also involved in the channelisation of terror funds through multiple routes.”
The anti-terror probe agency had registered a case suo motu on August 20, 2022, to probe terror activities of chiefs/members of proscribed terrorist organisations, such as Khalistan Liberation Force (KLF), BKI, International Sikh Youth Federation (ISYF), etc., who have established a massive network of terror operators across India.
“These outfits are working through operatives/members of terror outfits and organized criminal gangs to smuggle arms, ammunition, explosives, IEDs etc., from across the border. They have been using, narcotics trafficking, extortions, hawala trading, etc., to generate funds for carrying out terrorist activities on the Indian soil, NIA investigations so far have revealed,” the agency statement said on Friday.
