A week after it busted a Khalistan Zindabad Force (KZF) module that had weapons smuggled to it through a drone, police recovered its missing parts from the Dode-Chhapa canal near Chabhal town, around 35km from Tarn Taran district headquarters, on Sunday. Ten Punjab Police divers had been searching for the parts since Thursday.
With the arrest of Balwant Singh, alias Baba, alias Nihang, Akashdeep Singh, alias Akash Randhawa, Harbhajan Singh and Balbir Singh from Chola Sahib village in Tarn Taran last Sunday, police had recovered a huge cache of arms and ammunition, including five AK-47 rifles, hand grenades, satellite phones and fake currency from them. The module, backed by the Pakistan and Germany-based terror group, was conspiring to unleash a series of terror strikes, police had said.
The other half of the drone had been recovered from a godown in Chabal town of Tarn Taran on September 24 (Tuesday). Police claim that the drone was set on fire to hide evidence, after the machine did not work when the accused wanted to send it back across the border.
Preliminary investigation had revealed that Maan Singh, lodged in Amritsar Jail in an Arms Act and also under an Unlawful Activities (Prevention Act) UAPA case had recruited 20-year-old Akashdeep Singh, when they had been lodged together in Amritsar jail. This was done at the behest of his Germany-based handler Gurmeet Singh, alias Bagga, police have said.
{{/usCountry}}Preliminary investigation had revealed that Maan Singh, lodged in Amritsar Jail in an Arms Act and also under an Unlawful Activities (Prevention Act) UAPA case had recruited 20-year-old Akashdeep Singh, when they had been lodged together in Amritsar jail. This was done at the behest of his Germany-based handler Gurmeet Singh, alias Bagga, police have said.
{{/usCountry}}Later, Bagga’s brother Gurdev Singh and one Shubdeep Singh were arrested in the case. All seven accused are in police custody till October 3.
“A half-burnt drone was found from a godown in Chabhal on Tuesday. Our investigation showed that some parts were missing. During interrogation, the accused confessed to have thrown some parts of the drone, after burning, into the canal. These parts have been recovered and will be sent to the National Technical Research Organisation for examination,” said a police officer privy to the investigation.
Amritsar Central jail also searched
On Saturday, police searched the Amritsar Central jail, where three of the accused, Maan Singh, Akashdeep and Gurdev Singh, had hatched the conspiracy to receive weapons from across the border. An investigator said, “A search operation was launched in the barracks where Maan Singh was lodged. The barracks of Akashdeep and Gurdev Singh were also searched.”
Sources said the investigation team planned to take possession of mobile phones recovered over the past few months from this jail to zero in on the device used to plan the conspiracy for clues.