Bid to disrupt I-Day fete foiled; top terrorist held

With the arrest of a top terrorist on Wednesday night, the Punjab police claimed it had foiled Pakistan's Inter-Services Intelligence agency's plan to disrupt the golden jubilee celebrations of India's Independence.

The terrorist, a top leader of the Babbar Khalsa International, was arrested in Ludhiana.

According to the police, the militant was trying to raise a new terrorist outfit called the Sikh National Guards. The new force was to disrupt the jubilee celebrations by carrying out a series of terrorist actions including blowing up of vital installations.

Punjab Director General of Police P C Dogra said Britain-based non-resident Indian Gurnam Singh, having five pseudonyms, was arrested at Jalandhar bypass chowk. The arrest led to the recovery of 24 cakes of black RDX weighing about 15 kg besides time pencils, electronic timers, non-electronic timers and nine-volt batteries.

Originally from Dhanowal village of Jalandhar district, 49-year-old Gurnam Singh was to act in tandem with operatives who had already arrived from Pakistan and other foreign countries, including the United Kingdom.

Gurnam Singh's interrogation revealed that he had been actively involved with the Khalistan movement in Britain and other European countries for the past six to seven years.

During his stay in Pakistan, he interacted with leaders of various terrorist outfits, including Parmjit Singh Panjwar of Khalistan Commando Force, to finalise the strategy for revival of terrorism in Punjab.

Visiting India almost every year since 1991, Gurnam Singh came on a mission to carry out bomb explosions and political assassinations in September last year. He travelled to Jodhpur with accomplices to take delivery of RDX in a Jodhpur hotel. But the mission failed because the delivery did not take place.

On his current visit, Gurnam Singh landed on July 30 ahead of delivery of explosive material smuggled through R S Pura and Sambha sector of Jammu border by a Pakistani national with an Indian name, Dalib Singh. The Pakistani was brought in with the help of a smuggler who accompanied him till Jalandhar.

Meanwhile, a red alert has been sounded in the state in the wake of ISI plan.

Security arrangements, particularly in sensitive border districts, have been beefed up to foil any attempt to disrupt the celebrations.

All senior police officers, including inspectors general of police and additional directors general of police, have been deployed in the field to personally supervise the state-wide celebrations.

UNI

EARLIER REPORT: Fearing terrorist attacks, red alert sounded in Delhi for IDay