Khalistan banners outside Himachal Vidhan Sabha: SIT files chargesheet

Shimla, July 11

The Special Investigation Team (SIT) today filed a chargesheet against two accused in the court of Chief Judicial Magistrate (CJM), Dharamsala, for putting up banners of Khalistan outside the Himachal Pradesh Vidhan Sabha at Tapovan on the intervening night of May 7 and 8.

A case under Section 153-A, 153-B of the IPC and Section 3 of the HP Open Places (Prevention of Disfigurement) Act, 1985 was registered after a video message and a letter of Gurpatwant Singh Pannu of Sikh for Justice went viral on social media claiming responsibility for the act.

Accordingly, based on the contents of the viral message, Pannu was named as the main conspirator and a co-accused in the case and Section 13 of the Unlawful Activities Prevention Act (UAPA) 1967 was also added to it.

The SIT had arrested Harveer Singh and Paramjeet Singh, alias Pamma, both residents of Ropar in Punjab, and recovered from them a two-wheeler and a mobile phone used for commissioning the offence.

They disclosed to their interrogators that they had also made a video of the crime scene shared it with Pannu. A module of 247 persons indulging in anti-India propaganda has been unearthed and 188 of them are active in India.

The money was given to the accused in Sirhind and Pannu shared the location of the Vidhan Sabha with them. The state police are trying to locate the person associated with the Whatsapp group, police sources said.