The National Investigation Agency (NIA) on Tuesday conducted searches at 10 locations in Punjab and Haryana in a case linked to banned terrorist organization Khalistan Tiger Force (KTF).

The raids were being conducted at nine locations in Punjab and one in Haryana in connection with a criminal conspiracy hatched to raise funds for the banned terrorist outfit and also smuggle arms, ammunition and explosives for it from across the border. The NIA had registered a suo moto case on August 20 last year under various sections of Indian Penal Code and Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, 1967.

In the same case, the NIA arrested two ‘wanted’ close associates of Canada based ‘listed terrorist’ Arsh Dhalla on May 19 this year soon after they arrived at the Indira Gandhi International Airport (IGIA) from Manila, Philippines, where they had been living.
The duo, identified as Amritpal Singh alias Ammy and Amritk Singh, both hailing from Punjab, were nabbed in an early morning operation by the NIA, whose team was waiting at the Airport for their flight to land.

The NIA earlier informed that the two accused had non-bailable arrest warrants issued against them by the NIA Delhi Court in a case related to the unlawful and violent activities of banned organisations in India. The accused have several criminal cases registered against them in Punjab.

The NIA investigations have revealed that the accused had been working for individual designated terrorist Arshdeep Singh Dhalla to promote violent criminal activities of the KTF in India.

In association with another notorious wanted accused Manpreet Singh alias Peeta, the NIA has said, the two accused had been involved in smuggling weapons from Pakistan and recruitment of youth to carry out acts of violence and terror in the country at the behest of the KTF.

“They were also part of an extortion racket for raising funds for the banned outfit. The accused used to identify extortion targets, including businessmen, and then threaten them into parting with huge amounts. In case the identified targets refused, their homes and other premises would be fired at by the accused’s India-based associates,” the NIA said.

The arrests were part of NIA’s continuous crackdown on individual terrorists and terrorist outfits engaged in a criminal conspiracy to smuggle terrorist hardware, such as arms, ammunition and explosives, and raise funds for carrying out terrorist acts on the Indian soil.