The National Investigation Agency (NIA) on Sunday arrested a key Khalistani operative, associated with foreign-based Babbar Khalsa terrorist Harwinder Singh Sandhu alias Rinda, and one of the hardened criminals who had escaped during Punjab’s Nabha jail break in 2016, an official statement said.
The accused, Kashmir Singh Galwaddi, hailing from Ludhiana in Punjab, was arrested by the NIA in Motihari, Bihar, in coordination with local police in connection with a Khalistani terror conspiracy case, the statement said.
Since his escape in 2016, he remained involved with Khalistani terrorists, including Rinda, and helped carry out their activities across borders.
He played a key role in their network operating in Nepal, where he helped in sheltering and supporting other fugitives involved in terror activities.
According to the NIA, Kashmir Singh was part of a bigger conspiracy that aimed to provide support, shelter, and funding to Khalistani terrorists. These terrorists had fled to Nepal after carrying out several attacks in India, including the rocket-propelled grenade (RPG) attack on the Punjab Police Intelligence Headquarters in Mohali.
Kashmir Singh had been declared a proclaimed offender in an NIA case registered in 2022 and was on the run for years. The NIA had even announced a reward of Rs 10 lakh for any information leading to his arrest.
The NIA had started the investigation into this terror conspiracy in August 2022 to track the activities of banned groups like Babbar Khalsa International (BKI), Khalistan Liberation Force (KLF), and the International Sikh Youth Federation (ISYF).
The agency found that these groups were working closely with criminal gangs to smuggle weapons, explosives, and other items used in terror attacks into India. In July 2023, the NIA filed a chargesheet against nine accused in the case, including Rinda and his associate Lakhbir Singh alias Landa.
Two more chargesheets were filed against six others later. In August 2024, the anti-terror agency had successfully secured the extradition of Landa’s brother Tarsem Singh from UAE and filed a third supplementary chargesheet against him in December.
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