India Raids & Arrests BKI Sikh Separatists, Pakistan Arrests RAW Agents

On 21 Jun, Panjab Police said it had busted a terror module of the Babbar Khalsa International (BKI). The BKI module was operated by a UK-based handler Dharam Singh alias Dharma Sandhu, who was a close associate of a Pakistan-based Harvinder Singh Rinda. The police apprehended a local operative named Onkar Singh alias Nawab, a resident of Jalalusma village in Amritsar district. Police recovered one 9 mm Glock pistol and two .30 bore pistols from the accused. On the same day, Panjab Director General of Police (DGP) Gaurav Yadav said police also uncovered a cross-border drug smuggling racket with the arrest of Lovepreet Singh alias Love and Balwinder Singh alias Bobby who were allegedly in touch with a Pakistan-based smuggler. The police also recovered 6.15 kg of heroin, a .30 bore pistol with four cartridges and USD 120 in Indian currency from their possession. In the month of June, the Panjab police recovered Türkiye-made PX5 pistols in three separate operations in addition to Zigana Pistols which were recovered earlier. On 24 Jun, NIA conducted searches at 18 locations linked to BKI in Panjab, Haryana, and Uttar Pradesh. The NIA claimed to be investigating a larger conspiracy involving attempts to revive terrorism in Panjab through targeted killings, extortion, and smuggling. On 22 Jun, the Panjab police also arrested Gurpreet Singh, an army personnel posted in Jammu and his aide Sahil Masih for their alleged involvement in spying activities linked to Pakistan’s Inter-Services Intelligence. Meanwhile, Pakistan's Counter Terrorism Department has foiled a terror plot by arresting six suspected terrorists working for India's intelligence agency Research and Analysis Wing (RAW). The two operatives, Aslam and Akbar Ali were arrested in Bahawalnagar while obtaining explosives directly from India's Border Security Force. Three other alleged RAW agents—Azam alias Jaji, Manzoor alias Qari, and Amjad were captured from Toba Tek Singh. Zulfiqar (no second name), a key facilitator allegedly involved in funding these activities from Dubai, was nabbed in Bahawalpur (earlier coverage).