KZF module busted in Punjab, 2 ultras in police net

Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, October 4

The Punjab Police today claimed to have busted a Khalistan Zindabad Force (KZF) terror module with the arrest of two terrorists — Makhan Singh Gill, alias Amli, and Davinder Singh, alias Happy, both residents of Noorpur Jattan village in Hoshiarpur district.

Sophisticated arms and ammunition, including an MP5 sub-machine gun (with two magazines and 30 rounds) and a 9mm pistol (with two magazines and 30 rounds), besides an Etios car, four mobile phones and an Internet dongle have been seized.

DGP Dinkar Gupta said during preliminary investigations, Makhan disclosed they were in touch with Canada-based Harpreet Singh, who had instigated them to set up a terror module in Punjab to carry out targeted killings.

Makhan, who had earlier been a close aide of Babbar Khalsa International (BKI) chief Wadhawa Singh Babbar, claimed KZF operative Harpreet was a frequent visitor to Pakistan and was an associate of Pakistan-based KZF chief Ranjeet Singh, alias Neeta.

The accused told the interrogators the seized weapons had been arranged by Neeta through his associates. A couple of other handlers from Germany and the US had also figured in the module and were involved in the transfer of funds to Makhan through different money transfer services, including Western Union, and other channels, said Gupta.

The DGP said Makhan was a hardcore pro-Khalistan militant who had earlier been arrested by the Punjab Police for involvement in arms smuggling and various terror-related offences. As many as seven cases had been registered against him.

Pakistan-trained Makhan had stayed in the US during the 1980s and 90s. He had also stayed with the BKI chief in Pakistan for over 14 years, said the DGP.

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