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Khalistanis invested in movies, Canadian league, NIA charge sheet reveals
Besides, the money generated by the gangsters was invested in the clubs and bars in Thailand as well.
New Delhi: The National Investigation Agency’s probe into the financial activities of Canada-based top Khalistani leaders and gangsters has revealed that money generated in India through extortion and smuggling not only funds their violent acts, both in India and Canada, but is invested in yachts, movies and even the Canadian Premier League.
Besides, the money generated by the gangsters was invested in the clubs and bars in Thailand as well.
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The agency has listed 13 instances from 2019 to 2021 when amounts ranging from ₹5 lakh to ₹60 lakh was sent by gangster Lawrence Bishnoi to Canada and Thailand using the hawala route.
It has already been established by the agencies that Bishnoi, through his deputy Satwinderjeet Singh alias Goldy Brar, worked very closely with Khalistani groups operating from Canadian soil, particularly Babbar Khalsa International (BKI) leader Lakhbir Singh Landa.
“...the money collected through extortion, illegal liquor, arms smuggling business, etc was sent to Satwinderjeet Singh alias Goldy Brar and one Satbir Singh alias Sam in Canada through hawala for further investment as well as for funding the radical activities of pro-Khalistan elements (PKEs),” says the NIA charge sheet, filed in March against 14 persons who are part of larger Khalistan-gangster nexus.
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Asserting that the pointsperson for managing the ill-gotten money in Canada has been identified as one Satbir Singh alias Sam, the NIA charge sheet says, “Sam invested a part of this money to purchase yachts, finance movies and organise the Canadian Premier League in Canada”, adding that Bishnoi (currently in jail) confessed that he also received funds from Sam on several occasions.
The transactions to Canada mentioned by the NIA in its charge sheet include ₹2 lakh monthly sent to Goldy Brar in 2021, two payments of ₹20 lakh each in 2020 to Brar, ₹50 lakh given to Sam in 2020, again ₹60 lakh given to both Brar and Sam in 2021 and then two more separate payments of ₹40 lakh and ₹20 lakh to Sam in 2021.
The agency hasn’t further elaborated on the gangsters’ and Khalistanis’ investments in Canada.
Also Read: Act against pro-Khalistan elements targeting diplomats, India tells Canada
About investments in Thailand, NIA says “the money collected by the Lawrence Bishnoi gang through extortion, illegal liquor, arms smuggling business, etc was sent to one Manish Bhandari in Thailand through hawala by (gangster) Virendra Pratap alias Kala Rana, his father Joginder Singh and Rajkumar alias Raju Basodi for further investing in nightclubs and bars.”
“When any member of the Lawrence Bishnoi gang goes to Thailand, Bhandari provides accommodation and logistics support to him,” it adds.
A senior officer, who didn’t want to be named, said the ill-gotten money was also invested in various properties and efforts are on to identify all those assets.
Highlighting how the association of Bishnoi’s gang and PKEs was forged, the NIA charge sheet says Pakistan-based Babbar Khalsa International (BKI) leaders Wadhawa Singh and Harwinder Singh Rinda were searching for experienced shooters in India.
“This is where (the) Lawrence Bishnoi gang fitted into the scheme of things. His syndicate is spread across states (and Union territories) that include Punjab, Haryana, Chandigarh, Rajasthan, Delhi, Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Gujarat, Maharashtra, Bihar and Jharkhand.”
For the Indian gangs, the PKEs and terror groups provide an avenue to access sophisticated weapons, launder money, and settle members abroad “with the help of PKEs who are well settled in various countries across the world”, the charge sheet says.
A senior officer familiar with the activities of gangsters and PKEs in Canada said, “Ottawa needs to take into custody and hand over these two dozen-odd gangsters-PKEs such as Landa, Brar, Arshdeep Singh alias Arsh Dala who are the brains behind all the activities”.
