South Asia Terrorism Portal

PAKISTAN

TLP: Government held Hostage
Tushar Ranjan Mohanty
Research Associate, Institute for Conflict Management
 

On April 23, 2021, Minister for Information and Broadcasting Fawad Chaudhry declared that the agreement between the Government and the Tehreek-e-Labbaik Pakistan (TLP) had been fully implemented. He tweeted,

He was referring to an agreement reached between the Government and the TLP on the following of the latter's demands:

Though the Minister has claimed that the agreement had been "fully implemented," the fact is only one of the three demands had been fully met - the release of Saad Rizvi on April 20. A resolution for the expulsion of the French Ambassador was tabled by Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) lawmaker Amjad Ali Khan on behalf of the Government on April 20, in a special session of the National Assembly. Meanwhile, as tension escalated between the Government and the Opposition over the issue on April 24, the Deputy Speaker adjourned the Session for an indefinite period. The ban on TLP continues, while several TLP cadres still remain in jail.

It is pertinent to recall here that, on November 8, 2020, TLP staged a big rally at Sharea Faisal in Karachi, Sindh, and demanded severance of diplomatic ties with Paris, expulsion of the French Ambassador to Pakistan Marc Barety, and a boycott of French products. TLP asked the Federal Government to take “practical steps,” otherwise it would be compelled to take “extreme action”. TLP also urged the Federal Government to “declare jihad” against France.

TLP was opposing the publication of ‘blasphemous’ caricatures in France. The opposition to France was also in reaction of French President Emmanuel Macron’s statement in which he said: “Islam is a religion that is in crisis all over the world today, we are not just seeing this in our country.” Macron made this statement following the beheading of a French teacher in Paris on October 16, 2020. The teacher had shown caricatures of the Prophet Mohammed in a class.

As pressure mounted, on November 16, 2020, the Government reached an agreement with TLP to decide on the matter by February 16, 2021. On November 17, 2020, TLP released a copy of the handwritten agreement which read,

Soon after the agreement, on November 19, TLP founder and firebrand cleric Khadim Hussain Rizvi died after an illness. His son, Saad Rizvi, took over as TLP chief.

Apprehensive of the Government's inaction, Saad Rizvi warned on January 3, 2021,

However, on February 11, 2021, TLP called off its protest after a new agreement was signed between the party leaders and the Government in which it was decided that the latter would present the terms of an agreement signed between them on November 16, 2020, in the Parliament before April 20.

Again, as the deadline approached and TLP felt that no efforts were being made by the Government to fulfil its demand, Saad Rizvi issued a video message on April 11, mobilising TLP workers to prepare for a protest march if the Government failed to meet the deadline. Later, on the same day, he was arrested from Lahore.  

Expectedly, violent protests started immediately across Pakistan and gained steady momentum. The Government banned TLP on March 15. Violence escalated further. On April 18, TLP cadres attacked the Nawankot Police Station in Lahore, Punjab, and took 12 Policemen hostage. They were driven to their markaz (Centre) comprising a mosque and madrassa nearby. Abruptly, the Government bowed before TLP and opened channels for talks. 12 policemen were released on April 19, and later, on April 20 and an agreement was reached between the two sides. On the same day, Saad Rizvi was released. Hundreds of other TLP cadres arrested under the Maintenance of Public Order Act were also released.

According to official statistics, four policemen were killed and over 800 persons were injured in the violence between April 12 and April 19. Property worth PKR tens of millions was damaged.  TLP claimed 10 of its cadres were killed.

In between, before opening the channel of talks, the Government's appeasement of the radical elements within the country came to the fore, when Prime Minister Imran Khan tweeted, on November 17,

Further, on April 19, in a televised address to the nation, Imran Khan justified the ideological positioning of TLP saying,

He, nevertheless, conceded,

Meanwhile, highlighting the Government's inherent weakness, an editorial published by the Dawn on April 21, 2021, observed,

TLP, a far-right Islamist political party, is known for its countrywide street power and massive protests in opposition to any change to Pakistan's blasphemy law. The party was a product of the Bareilvi movement, and came into existence on August 1, 2015, subsequently rising to fame after the hanging of Mumtaz Qadri, convicted for the assassination of Former Punjab Governor Salman Taseer. Taseer was killed by Qadri, one of his body guards, who had reportedly been incensed by the Governor’s efforts to secure marginal amendments to the Blasphemy Law, as also his advocacy of Aasia Bibi, a Christian woman sentenced to death, purportedly for blasphemy. 

These recent developments are likely to give more strength to TLP and it will be an enormous challenge for the infirm Imran Khan Government to impose any authority over the group. Such a situation can only give a further fillip to radicalisation among all extremist Islamist formations in Pakistan, and this, in turn, may help terrorist groupings to recruit new cadres.

INDIA

Punjab: Peace Endures
Ajit Kumar Singh
Research Fellow, Institute for Conflict Management

On April 21, 2021, the Border Security Force (BSF) foiled an infiltration bid by three Pakistani intruders along the India-Pakistan international border in Pathankot.

On April 7, BSF personnel arrested 28-year-old Amjad Ali aka Majid Jutt, a resident of Kharak village in Lahore, Pakistani Punjab, at 'zero-point' in the Khemkaran area, along the India-Pakistan International Border, in Ferozepur District. A total of 20.5 kilograms of Heroin, a mobile phone, a power bank and a 13-foot-long PVC pipe (used to push in drug packets from under the border fence) were recovered by the BSF from Ali. Two of Ali's associates and some Indians (who were to receive the consignment) managed to esacpe. Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB) Deputy Director General (North) Gyaneshwar Singh disclosed, "It is an international drugs syndicate working from across the border. Suppliers are sitting across the fence and pushing in the drugs into India." NCB Deputy Director (Operations) K.P.S. Malhotra noted that this was the "first operation in which a Pakistani national was arrested alive" from the international front area, adding,

Later, on April 17, a man, identified as Jarnail Singh, was arrested by the NCB from Vadodara in Gujarat on leads provided by Ali.

On April 7, in a joint operation, BSF and Punjab Police neutralised one Pakistani smuggler and seized 22 packets of Heroin, two rifles and four magazines near Border Outpost (BOP) Kakkar Forward area in Amritsar District.

Along with these incidents at the Border, several incidents of drug recovery with Pakistani links took place inside Punjab.

On April 24, 2021, Punjab Police arrested three drug smugglers in Pathankot District. 265 grams of Heroin, a US-made 7.62mm pistol and five cartridges were recovered from their possession. Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) Gulneet Singh Khurana disclosed that, while checking vehicles, the police team stopped a car without a registration number plate coming from the Amritsar side. One of the three people sitting in the car opened fire at the Police team and they tried to escape, ''However, they were intercepted by the police team.” The SSP added that preliminary investigations revealed that one of the arrestees had close links with smugglers in Pakistan.

On April 2, 2021, the Punjab Police arrested three persons and seized eight kilograms of Heroin in Hoshiarpur District. SSP Navjot Singh Mahal stated that one of the arrestees, Sukhwinder Singh, often visited Pakistan and he allegedly developed connections with drug smugglers there.

According to a March 28, 2021, report, the BSF had seized 124.58 kilograms of Heroin along the International Border in Punjab in 2021, till that date.  BSF seized 517 kilograms of Heroin in 2020, in addition to 228 kilograms in 2019. BSF soldiers also shot dead eight drug smugglers and intruders in separate encounters in 2020 and arrested 13. An unnamed BSF officer disclosed, “The number of intruders trying to cross over, came down last year as we reacted swiftly.” Another BSF official stated, “With almost every drug consignment, weapons too are sent along. The most common weapon is a .30 bore pistol.”

On February 28, 2021, Punjab Director General of Police (DGP) Dinkar Gupta disclosed,

On December 10, 2019, Parliament was informed that, according to the NCB data, large quantities of drugs had been recovered from Punjab between 2015 and 2018. These included a total of 5,414.5 kilograms of Ganja (cannabis); 1,830.72 kilograms of Heroin; 1,669.41 kilograms of Opium; 168,420.32 kilograms of Poppy Husk and Poppy Straw; and 15,888,517 tablets of all type. SFs had arrested a total of 46,909 persons in drug-related cases over this period.

In a related development, on April 8, 2021, Police in the Canadian Provinces of Ontario and British Columbia as well as in California executed over 50 search warrants, resulting in 33 people being charged with over 130 offences. Of these, 23 were of Indian Punjabi origin. One suspect, Gurbinder Sooch, remains at large. The York Regional Police (YRP), which led the investigation and the subsequent crackdown, indicated that multiple agencies had worked on the operation that “dismantled a large-scale international drug trafficking network that extended to western Canada, the United States and India.” The investigation, named Project Cheetah, began in May 2020 and penetrated “a robust network” involved in importing large quantities of banned drugs into Canada.

Significantly, Pakistan’s Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) has been relentless in its efforts to smuggle in drugs and arms into Indian Punjab to create instability in the border State.

However, the ISI-backed terrorists, both Khalistani and Islamist, failed to carry out any significant attack in Punjab in 2020. However, one fatal incident took place on October 16, 2020, when anti-Khalistan activist Balwinder Singh Sandhu, who had fought against terrorism in Punjab for years, was shot dead by unidentified assailants at his native Bhikhiwind village in Tarn Taran District.

The last major attack by ISI-backed terrorists in Punjab took place on November 18, 2018, when at least three people were killed and 20 were injured in a grenade blast at a religious congregation at the Nirankari Satsang Bhawan at Adliwal village in Amritsar District.

Meanwhile, the Punjab Police foiled many attacks as they neutralised several terrorist modules and arrested at least 26 terrorism suspects in 2020, in addition to 31 arrested in 2019. In the most recent incident on October 4, 2020, Punjab Police neutralized a Khalistan Zindabad Force (KZF) terrorist module with the arrest of two terrorists - Makhan Singh Gill aka Amli and Davinder Singh aka Happy, from Noorpur Jattan village in Hoshiarpur District. Police seized two sophisticated weapons and ammunition, including one sub-machine gun (with two magazines and 30 live rounds) and one 9 mm pistol (with two magazines and 30 live rounds), besides an Etios car, four mobile phones, and an internet dongle. DGP Dinkar Gupta disclosed,

Several other measures were also taken in 2020, in addition to initiatives of the past, to thwart Pakistani design. On July 1, 2020, the Union Ministry of Home Affairs (UMHA) declared nine persons, including Gurpatwant Singh Pannun, the United States (US)-based 'legal adviser' of Sikhs for Justice (SFJ), terrorists under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA) for their involvement in acts of terrorism and pushing the Khalistan movement. A UMHA release observed,

The other designated terrorists included: Wadhawa Singh Babbar, Pakistan-based ‘chief’ of Babbar Khalsa International (BKI); Paramjit Singh, the United Kingdom-based ‘chief’ of BKI; Lakhbir Singh, the Pakistan-based ‘chief’ of the International Sikh Youth Federation (ISYF); Ranjeet Singh, the Pakistan-based ‘chief’ of the KZF; Bhupinder Singh Bhinda, a Germany-based key member of KZF; Gurmeet Singh Bagga, a Germany-based key member of KZF; Paramjit Singh, the Pakistan-based ‘chief’ of Khalistan Commando Force; and Hardeep Singh Nijjar:, the Canada-based ‘chief’ of the Khalistan Tiger Force (KTF).

SFJ, which was formed in 2007, is trying to make inroads  in Punjab in particular, and India at large, since 2018. The group came into prominence in August 2018, after its August 12 ‘London Declaration’ where it called for a ‘Referendum 2020’ for Khalistan.

More recently, on April 21, 2021, the Punjab Government approved a reward policy to encourage information and inputs leading to recovery of drugs under the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act. This is an “important step towards motivating people to play a proactive role in helping the government in cracking down on drug smugglers and traffickers,” a press note said.

The strict vigil and proactive action by the SFs have helped keep Punjab free of terrorism. However, there is no dearth of attempts by the ISI to push Punjab back into the dark era of the 1980s and early 1990s. Persistent vigilance and tenacious action by the Indian Forces remain a necessity to contain and eventually defeat the Pakistani design. 

AFGHANISTAN

63 civilians killed in 'Taliban attacks' in Afghanistan in the last 11 days, says Ministry of Interior on April 25: The Ministry of Interior (MoI) said in a statement on April 25 said that the Taliban is responsible for 62 blasts and an additional 6 suicide bombings in the last 11 days, killing 63 civilians and injuring another 180. Tolo News, April 26, 2021.

NSA says release of Taliban prisoners would be conditional: On April 24, National Security Adviser (NSA) Hamdullah Mohib, addressing a press conference, said that the government would release 7,000 Taliban prisoners, demanded by the group as part of the Doha deal, only if the group significantly reduces violence. NSA Mohib urged the Taliban not to demand the release of drug traffickers. Atn News, April 26, 2021.

Afghan military may not 'hold on' after US troop withdrawal, says US Central Command chief General Kenneth McKenzie: The head of United States Central Command General Kenneth McKenzie on April 22 said that he is concerned that the Afghan military will collapse after the United States and international troops leave Afghanistan. "I am concerned about the ability of the Afghan military to hold on after we leave, the ability of the Afghan Air Force to fly, in particular, after we remove the support for those aircraft," McKenzie, head of US Central Command, said during a Senate Armed Services Committee. Tolo News, April 24, 2021.

Foreign Ministers of Afghanistan, Turkey and Pakistan meet in Istanbul to revive peace: On April 23, Foreign Ministers from Afghanistan, Turkey and Pakistan held a meeting in Istanbul in an effort to revive the Afghan peace process days after a key UN-led conference was postponed due to non-participation of the Taliban. The Foreign Ministers recognized the efforts of Turkey, Qatar and the UN to hold a high-level meeting in ?stanbul aimed at giving momentum to the ongoing Afghanistan Peace Negotiations. Tolo News, April 24, 2021.

BANGLADESH

HeI dissolves its central committee: The central committee of the Qawmi madrasa-based Hefajat-e Islam (HeI) has been dissolved on April 25. The announcement was made by the Islamist outfit's Amir (Chief) Junayed Babunagari, through a 1.24-minute video message. "The committee has been dissolved on advice of some important members of the central committee," he said in the message from Hathazari madrasa in Chattogram. The Daily Star, April 26, 2021.

HuJI-B is back in garb of HeI, say intelligence reports: According to intelligence reports of multiple agencies, including the Police, the banned militant outfit Harkat-ul-Jihad-al Islami Bangladesh (HuJI-B) is back, this time in the garb of Hefajat-e-Islam (HeI). HuJI-B was found to be involved in the three-day HeI mayhem that was carried out across the country from March 26 to March 28 in protest against the visit of Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi. The Daily Star, April 26, 2021.

SRI LANKA

702 suspects have been arrested over the Easter Sunday bomb attacks as of April 24, says Police Spokesman DIG Ajith Rohana: Police Spokesman DIG Ajith Rohana on April 24 said a total of 702 suspects have been arrested over the Easter Sunday bomb attacks as of April 24. He said that 202 of them are currently in remand custody while 83 others have been detained by the Criminal Investigations Department (CID) and Terrorism Investigation Division (TID) for interrogations. Daily Mirror, April 22, 2021.

All those responsible for devastating attacks on Easter Sunday will be brought to justice, says Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa: Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa stated in Parliament on April 21 that all those responsible for the devastating attacks on Easter Sunday will be brought to justice. Today (April 21) marks the two-year anniversary of the brutal terrorist attack on Easter Sunday and a minute of silence was observed in the House at the request of Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa. Colombo Page, April 22, 2021.