The National Investigation Agency on Thursday filed a chargesheet against two members of the Khalistan Terrorist Force, who recently got deported from the Philippines.
The anti-terror agency has named the two accused, Manpreet Singh alias Peeta and Mandeep Singh, as aides of ‘listed individual terrorist’ Arshdeep Singh alias Arsh Dalla.
According to the NIA, Arshdeep had recruited Manpreet and Mandeep, who were operating from the Philippines. The duo was actively involved in recruiting youth into a terror and crime syndicate, the NIA added.
In its second supplementary chargesheet in the case, the NIA said the two accused also played a vital role in the “larger terror conspiracy against India” by raising funds for the proscribed terrorist organisation, Khalistan Terrorist Force (KTF), through large-scale extortions from India. They channelled all the money into drugs, other businesses and trades as well as to different countries via the hawala network, the chargesheet said.
The NIA said the accused were also involved in smuggling arms and ammunition into Indian territory from Pakistan. It further said the chargesheet has exposed the role of international nodes of the KTF, recruitment and handling of India-based accused, as well as the complex fundraising and transfer mechanism via formal channels with layering and other mechanisms, and through informal channels.
During the investigation, it was revealed that the accused had entered into a criminal conspiracy to raise funds for the KTF. Arshdeep, in collusion with Manpreet, had recruited criminal cadres and terror operatives while also forming a full-fledged terror and criminal syndicate in Punjab, the NIA said. They were targeting businessmen and high net worth individuals and professionals, and using weapons to threaten victims if their demands were ignored, the agency added.
The NIA investigation has also established that the extortion money was sent to foreign countries through banking and non-banking channels to promote terror and terrorist activities against India. This complex network of operatives of the KTF, which is based abroad and also operating in India, was continuously involved in recruiting and guiding criminal associates in India.
The network was also involved in smuggling arms and ammunition, besides explosives from across the border through drones and other diverse mediums for carrying out terrorist activities in India, the NIA said.
Earlier, the NIA had filed chargesheets against 13 accused in July and November last year. Ten other accused and their aides, associates of the KTF and Babbar Khalsa International (BKI), are under investigation for their role in the conspiracy.
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