ISI trying to revive Sikh Militancy
Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) of Pakistan is making serious attempts to revive Sikh militancy in India by coordinating and establishing linkages among various terrorist outfits with the Sikh extremist leaders. Attempts to revive Sikh militancy are being mostly planned from countries abroad like the US, Canada, Germany, UK, France, Norway and Belgium, besides Pakistan in the absence of ground support in India, intelligence agencies say. But the fact that these terror groups have established nexus among themselves in terms of financial and logistical support, sharing of information and tactical planning could be a reason for worry, have cautioned the government in their latest input.
An intelligence input indicated that representatives of Babbar Khalsa International, International Sikh Youth Federation/Rhode (ISYF/R) and Lashkar-e-Tayyaba met in Berlin in June 2007 and decided that financial support would be extended to the LeT and logistical support to the BKI to carry out terrorist actions in India. Another input indicated that Nationalist Socialist Council of Nagaland (Isaac-Muivah) (NSCN-IM) had got in touch with the UK-based Sikh organisation, Parliamentarians for National Self-Determination (PNSD) for modelling their ''position paper'' on the pattern of the Sikh Position Paper.
According to intelligence reports with the Centre, directions have been given by the ISI to various terrorist groups, particularly LeT, to exploit the existing conflict situations in the country by inciting violent protests and clashes. Intelligence officials say the August 25 twin bomb explosions in Hyderabad and May 18 Mecca Masjid blasts last year were carried out with this objective. Recent module busted include arrest of Paramjit Singh Dhadi, a ISYF/Rhode UK activist, in December 2006, who was motivated in Pakistan during his visit to Nankana Sahib (Pakistan) in March 2006 by an ISI operative to work for Khalistan Movement in India and supply drugs and fake Indian currency notes (FICN).
In turn, Dhadi motivated Balbir Singh alias Beera, a Pakistan returned KCF terrorist, arrested in April 2007, for using him as human bomb to eliminate Parkash Singh Badal during the February 2007 Punjab Assembly elections.
Serious attempts by ISI, to revive the spectre of Sikh militancy, continues since the year 2005 which got exposed in the twin blasts in Delhi at Liberty and Satyam cinema halls carried out by Babbar Khalsa International (BKI) on May 22, 2005. According to the intelligence agencies, the growing linkages among various terrorist outfits on the tactical plane coupled with aid and encouragement provided to them by elements inimical to India's interests, particularly the Pakistan-based ISI, pan-Islamic terrorist organisations, the erstwhile SIMI, underworld elements and organised crime groups are of concern.
The spectrum of targets identified by these terror outfits has broadened to include energy and critical infrastructure, transport sector, iconic targets, VIPs and prominent individuals and installations of economic significance. There has been noticeable diversification in the routes for induction of manpower and terrorist hardware, ingress is being made via the land route through Nepal and Bangladesh, the official added.
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