Amarinder's 'terror' list to Trudeau: Details of 5 most wanted operatives

CHANDIGARH: The list that Punjab chief minister Captain Amarinder Singh handed over to Canadian PM Justin Trudeau on February 21 has minute details of the nine men who are seen as the most active handlers of alleged Khalistani terrorists in Punjab.
Most of them are linked to International Sikh Youth Federation (ISYF) and Khalistan Tiger Force. Details in the list include when they last visited India, how they funded firearms for terror modules and how they received funds from terror groups in Pakistan.
Of the nine names, five have been booked for various crimes including terror activities.They are Gurjeet Singh Cheema, Gurpreet Singh, Hardeep Singh Nijjar, Gurjinder Singh Pannu and Malkeet Singh alias Fauji.
TOI is not making the remaining four names public as the men are still being investigated and are yet to be booked for serious offences. The process of issuing red corner notices against the accused is also under process.
Trudeau’s trip, which was supposed to be a public relations exercise, turned into a political minefield after senior ministers of both the Centre and the Punjab government initially avoided meeting him to register their protest over the Canadian government’s alleged proximity to some so-called Khalistani sympathisers. Interestingly, ISYF figured even in the joint statement that Trudeau and Modi released after meeting on Friday.
The list given to Trudeau includes details of the Canada-based handlers not only arming the modules but also funding them. For instance, Cheema transferring Rs 75,000 Sukhmanpreet Singh in July 2016 and May 2017 to help set up a module. He also helped module members get ‘militant hardware’ from Pakistan through his associate there, Lakhbir Singh Rode. Rode is the nephew of slain terrorist Jarnail Singh Bhindranwale and brother of former Akal Takht jathedar Jasbir Singh Rode.
Gurpreset Singh, on the other hand, arranged more than Rs 1 lakh for his module between June 2016 and February, 2017. Nijjer sourced Rs 10 lakh to Jagtar Tara in September 2012 to carry out terror activities in India. Tara is accused in the August 1995 assassination of former Punjab chief minister Beant Singh and is presently in Burail jail in Chandigarh.
Cheema, Gurpreet Singh and Pannu have been identified as operatives of ISYF. An FIR was registered against them on May 21, 2017 in Amritsar. They have been booked under Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA) and the Arms Act.
Nijjar is accused of raising a 5-member Khalistan Tiger Force (KTF) module in 2014 and four criminal cases have been registered against him. In 2009, he was accused of murdering Rulda Singh, the then head of the Rashtriya Sikh Sangat, an affiliate of RSS.
Fauji is a Babbar Khalsa International (BKI) operative and was booked under UAPA and Arms Act on June 5, 2017.
One of the four men, whose identity has not been revealed by TOI, is a frequent visitor to Pakistan and maintains contact with chief of the Khalistan Zindabad Force. Another accused was one of the key speakers at an event outside Canadian parliament on June 10 last year where the Khalistan flag was hoisted.
Details of the infamous 5:
- Canadian national based in Brampton and Toronto
- International Sikh Youth Federation (ISYF) operative
- Originally from Jogi Cheema village, Gurdaspur
- Last visited Punjab in March-April, 2017, to create ISYF module for terrorist activities
- Visited Gwalior in March 2017 to source weapons
- Transferred funds to the module in July 2016, May 2017
- Arranged consignment of militants' hardware through Pakistani terrorists
- Based in Brampton city, Canada
- ISYF operative
- Has roots in two villages in Moga - Lande and Hakam Ka Agwar
- Visited India in March 2016 to activate militant module
- In November 2016, sourced two pistols with help from Pakistan-based Harmeet PhD for ISYF members
- Provided funds for buying pistols from Gwalior in April 2017
- Transferred funds to militant operatives in Punjab in 2016 and 2017
- Based in Surrey, Canada
- Khalistan Tiger Force (KTF) operative
- Originally from Bhar Singhpur village of Phillaur, Jalandhar
- Trained 4 Sikh youths in AK-47 and sniper firing in Mission Hills near British Columbia in December 2015 for terrorist activities in Punjab
- One of these 4 youths - Mandeep Singh Dhaliwal- sent to Punjab for targeted killings was arrested in May 2016
- Settled in Hamilton port city, Canada
- ISYF operative
- Originally from Chaudhari Wala village in Tarn Taran
- Funded purchase of weapons between June 2016 and February 2017 to ISYF members Gurpreet Peet and others, arrested by Punjab police
- Settled in Surrey, Canada
- Babbar Khalsa International (BKI) operative
- Originally from Talwandi Nahar village, Amritsar
- Sourced weapons from Uttar Pradesh in 2014 for a militant module
- Went back to Canada in 2014 after forming BKI module, which included Gurjit Ghaint, Gurmukh Singh and Hari Singh, who were later arrested by Punjab police