The NIA announced a monetary reward for information leading to the arrest of Lakhbir Singh Sandhu alias ‘Landa’ on Wednesday.
The National Investigation Agency (NIA) announced a monetary reward for information that results in the arrest of Babbar Khalsa International (BKI) operative Lakhbir Singh Sandhu alias ‘Landa’ on Wednesday, stepping up its crackdown on Khalistani militants. Rewards were also announced for information on four other BKI operatives: Harwinder Singh Sandhu alias Rinda’, Parminder Singh Kaira alias ‘Pattu’, Satnam Singh alias ‘Satbir Singh’ alias ‘Satta’, and Yadvinder Singh alias ‘Yadda’.
The federal agency declared a financial prize of Rs. 10 lakh for Rinda and Landa, and Rs. 5 lakh for Pattu, Satta, and Yadda. The BKI is a terrorist organization that has been declared illegal.
The declaration by the NIA came a day after Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau accused India of complicity in the June death of Khalistani leader Hardeep Singh Nijjar. India, on the other hand, dismissed the claim as “absurd and motivated.”
In an alert published on Wednesday, the external affairs ministry asked its residents in Canada to take “utmost caution” due to an increase in anti-India activities and hate crimes.
Who is Lakhbir Singh Sandhu, also known as ‘Landa’?
1. Lakhbir Singh Landa, a citizen of Tarn Taran in Punjab, is thought to live in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada.
2. A close associate of Pakistan-based gangster-turned-terrorist Harvinder Singh, alias Rinda, Landa escaped to Canada in 2017 and joined the pro-Khalaistan terror group BKI.
3. In July 2011, Landa was charged with murder and violating the Arms Act in Harike Pattan. He is presently facing roughly 18 criminal cases in Amritsar, Tarn Taran, Moga, and Ferozepur districts, including murder, attempted murder, and drug smuggling. Before fleeing to Canada, the Punjab Police had filed a kidnapping complaint against Landa in Moga in May 2016.
4. Landa was also a main conspirator in the RPG attack on the Punjab Police intelligence headquarters in Mohali, as well as the placing of an improvised explosive device (IED) under a sub-inspector’s car in Amritsar.
5. The NIA opened the case in 2022 when it was discovered that terrorist groups and terror elements headquartered abroad were collaborating with leaders and members of organized criminal gangs operating in the country’s northern states to perform targeted killings and violent criminal actions.
According to the NIA, and four others are wanted in connection with the BKI’s terrorist actions aimed at disrupting India’s peace and communal harmony, as well as sowing terror in the state of Punjab.
Read More: ‘It’s a safe country,’ says Canada in response to India’s travel advisory
7. They are accused of authorizing terrorist acts and activities, in addition to obtaining finances for the BKI, by smuggling terrorist hardware and narcotics into Punjab, as well as significant extortion from businesses and other notable individuals.
