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Pro-Khalistani terrorists residing in Pakistan

Pakistan has been deeply involved in training, guiding and arming Sikh terrorists. Wadhawa Singh, Chief Babbar Khalsa International (BKI), Lakhbir Singh Rode, Chief, International Sikh Youth Federation (ISYF), Paramjit Singh Panjwar, Chief, Khalistan Commando Force (KCF), Gajinder Singh, Chief, Dal Khalsa International (DKI) and Ranjit Singh @ Neeta, Chief, Khalistan Zindabad Force (KZF) permanently based in Pakistan, have been coordinating terrorist activities of their outfits in Punjab and elsewhere in India under the guidance of Pak ISI. Pak ISI agents regularly escort Sikh terrorists for trans-border movement and provide safe havens for their shelter and dumps for weapons and explosives.

Interrogation reports of Sikh terrorists arrested in India suggest training of Sikh youth in Pakistan (including arms training in the use of rifle, sniper gun, LMG, grenade and causing explosions using gun powder) and possession of arms and explosives by the Pak based Sikh terrorist leaders. These IRs also suggest plans of Pak ISI through Pak based terrorists to cause explosions in big cities like Amritsar, Ludhiana, Chandigarh, Delhi and targetting of VVIPs. Nearly 200 Sikh youth were reportedly getting training in Pakistan in the first half of 2001. Details of training camps which were imparting training to Sikh extremists are enclosed.

Pak ISI operatives based abroad had stepped up recruitment particularly among illegal immigrants for training in Pak camps for terrorist related activities. Concerned over the difficulties expressed by terrorists in recruiting youth to carry out subversive activities in Punjab on a large scale, the Pak authorities were exploring the possibilities of involving the following:-

I. Sikh youth in rural areas of Indian Punjab, addicted to opium and various drugs,

II. Sikh youth abroad who had freshly arrived from India in search of greener pastures,

III. Hindu youth from rural areas of Sikh families with Sikh traditions, and

IV. Pak Christian boys belonging to lower strata of society.

To avoid exposure of their continued support to Sikh terrorists, Pakistan is using Kashmiri separatist outfits as fronts for handling Sikh terrorists and creating a sort of nexus between the two. Lashkar-e-Toiba was entrusted with the task of training men from BKI and ISYF in the use of weapons and infiltration into India via Jammu region. A 35 day training programme was launched by LeT in Mar- April 2001. BKI and LeT have set up a common office outside Nanakana Sahib (West side). LeT Foreign Affairs Secretary, Prof Hafiz Abdul Rehman is said to be the close friend of Wadhawa Singh, Pak based chief of BKI.

Ranjit Singh @ Neeta @ Manpreet Pak based chief of Khalistan Zindabad Force (KZF) enjoys considerable support of Kashmiri terrorists. He along with some ISI officials had played a major role in working out a nexus among various terrorist groups.

Pakistan has kept Pak based terrorists under constant pressure to produce results. With the support of Pak ISI, Jammu bred Ranjit Singh @ Neeta, Chief of KZF has spread his activities in Jammu and Punjab. Pak mission in Kathmandu is providing logistic help to close associates of Neeta who had been used as conduit for spreading terrorist activities in India. The arrest of some BKI and KZF activists in India during the years 2000-01 have amply proved the connivance of Pak ISI officials in Kathmandu in Sikh extremist activities.

Formation of Pakistan Sikh Gurudwara Prabandhak Committee in April 1999 under the chairmanship of ex-DG, Pak ISI Lt. Gen. (Retd) Javed Nasir has been a subtle move of Pak ISI to achieve its long and short term goals. The creation of PSGPC has given a tailor made opportunity to Pak ISI to intermix with pro-Khalistanis, including those from India, and also control substantial amount of donations received by Gurudwaras. These donations are used to make the pro-Khalistan movement against India ‘self sufficient’ in view of economic crunch in Pakistan. Pakistan to some extent has achieved success in impressing the gullible Sikhs that Sikh Gurudwaras under PSGPC are better maintained than SGPC. Pak Govt has liberalised visas for visiting Sikhs and this propaganda is done very effectively during the visit of jathas. Since theformation of PSGPC, the interaction between pro-Khalistani Sikhs including those from India has substantially increased. The visit by private jathas has also provided an effective channel of communication between Pak based terrorists and their accomplices in India. Pak ISI officials who are deliberately attached with the jathas, try to elicit information affecting security of India and spreading malice and discontent.

During the visit of Sikh jathas on Guru Purab (Nov 2000) a group of 160 members of ISYF (R ), UK and World Sikh Muslim Federation, UK was taken to Islamabad (Nov 7) to meet POK PM Sultan Mehmood Chaudhury. (It may be recalled that he was the Chief guest during the annual convention of ISYF (R) UK held on Sept 17, 2000 and personally knew members of visiting group). Sultan called upon the Sikhs to work with the Kashmiris on human rights issues and project the Kashmir cause through their govt-in-exile in UK.

In another significant move, Jamaat-e-Islami (JEI) held a separate reception for BKI at their headquarters(Mansoora; Nov 17, 2000) JEI leader Qazi Ahmed Hussain called upon these leader to revive militancy in Punjab and assured them of his organisation’s help in training and induction of arms. Shortly after this, Avtar Singh Sanghera, Kartar Singh and J P Singh from UK in a press conference stated that the Sikhs should sacrifice their lives to protect mosques and other places of Muslims from the Hindu extremists.

ISYF (R) activists have come to notice for making frequent trips between Pakistan, Bangkok and USA. During their visits to USA, they usually stay in motels owned by one Syed Shah, who acts as main coordinator between radical Sikh groups in USA. Sadiq Mohmmad and Bhatti, officials in Pak missions in New York and Los Angeles respectively, are believed to be actively involved in pro-Khalistani activities.

A joint political platform World Muslim Sikh Federation (WMSF) was floated in 1996 to provide a joint anti-India platform to Sikhs and Muslims. Manmohan Singh Bajaj of Dal Khalsa, Samiullah Malik, a known ISI agent in UK and Usman Khalid, a UK based retired ISI officer are the main brains behind it. In this move, they have received the cooperation of Khalid Ranjha , Minister ofLaw in Punjab (Pakistan). Manmohan Singh Bajaj is a frequent visitor to Pakistan and very close to Pak ISI and PSGPC officials.

In Germany , International Sikh Muslim Friendship Organisation under Jaswant Singh Bhandal has been propped up by Pak ISI to forge unity between Sikhs and Muslims. Pak ISI has been helping this organisation to spread its branches in Holland, UK and Italy through their contacts. With the help of Pak Embassy in Germany, All Pak German Cultural Association under one Abid Akhtar is holding periodical meetings which brings Sikh and Kashmiri terrorists under one platform to spread anti-India propaganda.

Though after the Sep 11 attacks Pakistan had advised the Pak based terrorists to lie low and cadres of BKI and KCF had been shifted to Islamabad and Faizabad respectively, Pak propaganda aimed at forging Sikh Muslim unity was quite discernible during the recent visit of Sikh jathas to Pakistan on Guru Purab in Nov 2001. The focus of speeches by the Pak leaders was on the historical links between Sikhs and Muslims. Pak ISI is keen to promote International Sikh Muslim Itehad Federation which is likely to act as front for organising future activities aimed at anti-India propaganda to portray Sikhs and Kashmiris as natural allies fighting for a common cause against Govt of India.

TRAINING CAMPS IN PAKISTAN FOR SIKH TERRORISTS

The following training camps were in existence in Pakistan which were imparting training to Sikh extremists.

I. Kot Lakhpat

II. Chakowal

III. Gujaranwala

IV. Mianwali

V. Peshawar

VI. Attock

VII. Shahidan Da Banga

A Pak ISI office located in Gulbarg locality in Lahore was also reportedly being used by Wadhawa Singh, Pak based Chief of BKI for imparting training to BKI activists. In addition, big bungalows provided to Pak based terrorists in Lahore and adjoining area were being used as training centres by the terrorists.

Source: Govenment of India

 

 

 

 

 
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