New Delhi: The National Investigation Agency (NIA) has arrested six local associates of gangsters-turned-terrorists operating from foreign soil including a Khalistani ideologue Lucky Khokar alias Denis, who allegedly worked closely with Canada based designated terrorist Arshdeep Singh alias Arsh Dala and was carrying out recruitment and funding activities for him, people familiar with the matter said on Thursday.
Others arrested are also closely linked to gangsters such as Goldy Brar, Jaggu Bhagwanpuria and Lawrence Bishnoi. The arrests are part of the agency’s largerinvestigation into the nexus between Khalistanis (separatists who want a Sikh nation, Khalistan), gangsters, and Pakistan based terror groups.
The agency is currently in the process of identifying all such local associates, particularly in the eight north Indian states, who are recruiting young men, collecting funds, and engaging in extortion and the smuggling of arms and ammunition .
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“They have access to guns, money, and now resources of well-funded terrorist organisations operating from Pakistan. We are working with police in different states. It will take time but this entire network needs dismantling like once Mumbai underworld was cleaned by the agencies,” one of the people cited in the first instance added on condition of anonymity.
The federal agency has already taken over or registered on its own about half a dozen cases linked to gangsters and terrorists operating from Punjab, Delhi, Haryana, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh and other states and has carried out several raids targeting them since August 2022.
According to a NIA spokesperson, Khokar, a resident of Bhatinda in Punjab was arrested on Tuesday from Sri Ganganagar, Rajasthan, after a crackdown at 76 places in eight states.
“Khokhar was in direct and frequent contact with Arsh Dala in Canada, and carried out recruitment for him and received funds from him for carrying out terror related activities,” the NIA spokesperson added, pointing out that he provided arms and ammunition to Arsh Dala’s associates in Punjab on the gangster’s directions. These weapons were used in the killing of Paramjit Singh in Jagraon, Punjab in January on the directions of Arsh Dala, the spokesperson said.
Khokhar, “was working for Dala, who has been involved in smuggling arms, ammunition, explosives, IEDs etc. across international and inter-state borders in India for several Khalistani terror outfits, including the Khalistan Liberation Force (KLF), Babbar Khalsa International (BKI) and International Sikh Youth Federation (ISYF),” he added.
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Dala was designated as an individual terrorist under Unlawful Activities Prevention Act (UAPA) by the Centre in January.
Besides Khokhar, those arrested by the NIA this week include Lakhvir Singh, Harpreet, Dalip Bishnoi, Surinder alias Chiku Chaudhary, and Hari Om alias Titu.
“ NIA investigations have so far shown that many criminals, who were leading gangsters in India, fled to countries such as Pakistan, Canada, Malaysia, Philippines and Australia and were planning their terror and criminal acts from there, in association with criminals lodged in jails in different states. These groups were carrying out targeted killings and raising funds for their nefarious activities through smuggling of drugs and weapons, hawala and extortions,” the NIA spokesperson said.