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Chandigarh blast accused were promised hefty reward, ticket to Canada: Probe
Police investigation has revealed that both suspects, who are drug addicts and school dropouts, were promised a hefty reward of over ₹5 lakh and a ticket to Canada via Dubai once their “task” was completed, only to be ditched later by US-based Khalistani gangster Happy Passia
The accused in the Sector 10 grenade blast case, Vishal Masih and Rohan Masih, both aged 19 and hailing from economically deprived backgrounds, carried out the attack under the influence and promises made by US-based Khalistani gangster Happy Passia.
Police investigation has revealed that both suspects, who are drug addicts and school dropouts, were promised a hefty reward of over ₹5 lakh and a ticket to Canada via Dubai once their “task” was completed, only to be ditched later by Passia.
Rohan, a native of Passia village in Punjab, was acquainted with Passia’s family due to their shared roots in the village. Police sources confirmed that Rohan’s brother also knew Passia personally, which helped establish the connection between the gangster and the suspects.
Vishal, a resident of Raimal village, comes from a labourer family. Both of them were working as carpenters in Jammu and Kashmir.
According to police, Passia took advantage of their vulnerable circumstances, promising them financial gain and a chance at a better future abroad.
The police probe revealed that the suspects were initially handed ₹50,000 by Passia to carry out the attack. A portion of this money was used to execute the grenade attack.
Foiled attempt to contact Passia after attack
After executing the attack, the duo allegedly attempted to contact Passia for the rest of the promised reward. Finding his phone switched off, they realised they were abandoned by their so-called benefactor. “This is a common pattern in crimes linked to foreign-based gangsters, where they lure underprivileged youths with promises of huge rewards and relocation abroad through ‘donkey’ route, only to abandon them afterwards,” explained a senior police official.
Vishal, who aided Rohan in carrying out the grenade attack, fled to Jammu and Kashmir soon after the incident. Police revealed that Vishal panicked when his images from the crime scene began circulating on social media. Believing that the police might not be able to track him in a large city, he decided to head to Delhi. He boarded a bus from Jammu and Kashmir to Delhi, which made a stop in Chandigarh, unaware that the police were already closing in on him.
Police have also recovered a bike bearing a Punjab number found at the crime scene in Sector 10, which they suspect was part of the suspects’ backup plan to flee after the attack.
Took grenade training from YouTube
Rohan, who lobbed the grenade at the house, learned the technique from online videos, said police officials familiar with the probe. “There are numerous videos on platforms like YouTube that show how to handle and use grenades, and attackers don’t require specific training,” the official added. Police noted that this was not the first time that they encountered such cases where youth in Punjab had used online resources for criminal training.
The Special State Operation Cell (SSOC), Amritsar, is also probing the accused’s role in an arms smuggling network across Indo-Pak border.
