The National Investigation Agency has registered a case against Ludhiana blast suspect and Germany-based SFJ operative Jaswinder Singh Multani, after orders from the Ministry of Home Affairs.
“We have registered a case against Jaswinder Singh Multani,” a NIA spokesperson confirmed to News18.
The FIR has been registered under Sections 10,13, 17, 18 and 18 B of the UAPA for terror financing and conspiracy, section 121 of the IPC for waging war against India, and 120B IPC for criminal conspiracy.
“This case relates to criminal conspiracy hatched by Jaswinder Singh Multani with several other pro-Khalistani elements located abroad for radicalizing, motivating and recruiting youths in Punjab on ground and online through social media platforms to propagate their ideology with the aim to secede Punjab from the Union of India,” the NIA said in a release.
“They have been involved in raising funds to procure arms, ammunition and explosives by using smuggling networks in Punjab to revive terrorism in Punjab. Jaswinder Singh Multani has also been in contact with ISI operatives to carry out terror attack in Mumbai and other parts of India,” it added.
Multani was detained by German police earlier this week after a flag off from Indian agencies. A member of Sikhs for Justice, Multani is suspected to be the main facilitator for the Ludhiana court complex blast.
NIA officials said they have begun probe in the case and a decision on a team visiting Germany would be taken after the initial probe is completed. “No decision has been taken yet on sending a team to Germany. We have to complete our investigation here (India) first,” an official said.
As per Ministry of Hone Affairs, Multani was also conspiring to carry out tertor attacks in Mumbai. “In pursuance of conspiracy, Multani and his associates has been actively radicalising, motivating and recruiting youths in Punjab on ground an online through social media platforms. They have also been raising funds to procure arms and ammunition and explosives using smuggling network in Punjab for carrying out terror attacks and to create terror in the minds of people of India and revive terror in Punjab,” the MHA said.
Agencies suspect that Multani is in touch with ISI operative Jibran, Smuggler Rana Taseem, Imran and others to carry out a terror attack on Mumbai on the behest of ISI.
The NIA FIR would give teeth legally to India’s attempt to get German authorities to Act against Multani. Though NIA is probing a case against Sikh for Justice, Multani was not named as a suspect so far.
CNN-News18 had earlier reported that SFJ operative Multani had been arrested by German police, stating sources.He was purportedly planning to carry out another blast and other terrorist activities in poll-bound Punjab. Multani is a pro-Khalistan terrorist and was residing in Erfurt, Germany, the sources had said.
The blast at the Ludhiana court had killed one person and injured at least five others. The initial probe indicates that the attack was carried out by Pakistan-based terror outfits through local gangsters, sources had earlier told CNN-News18. The attackers wanted to plant the bomb on the ground floor to cause maximum damage to the building and kill as many people as possible, they had added. The explosive apparently went off while it was being fixed.
Founded in 2007, Sikhs for Justice is a primarily US-based organisation that has been demanding a separate homeland for Sikhs in Punjab, dubbed “Khalistan”. The outfit was banned by the Indian government in 2019 under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act for promoting secession and violent militancy in Punjab.
Multani recently came to notice in arranging and sending weapons consignments comprising explosives, hand grenades, etc, into Punjab from across the border with the help of his Pakistan-based operatives and arms smugglers.
According to recent inputs, he was planning to send explosive material from Pakistan for Punjab-based operatives to carry out terrorist activities. He is closely connected with Khalistani leaders like Hardeep Singh Nijjer, Paramjit Singh Pamma, Sabi Singh, Kulwant Singh Mothada and others, say sources.
British police last month carried out raids on the Hounslow office of SFJ. They took away electronic devices and documents from the site related to the so-called ‘Punjab referendum’ organised by the outfit recently that turned out to be a farce with very few people participating.
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