NIA seizes properties of accused linked to Shaurya Chakra awardee’s killing in Gurdaspur

The National Investigation Agency (NIA) announced on Wednesday that it has attached multiple immovable properties associated with two accused individuals in a Punjab narco-terror case related to the assassination of Shaurya Chakra awardee Comrade Balwinder Singh Sandhu by operatives of the banned Khalistan Liberation Force (KLF).

Acting on directives from a special NIA court in Punjab’s Mohali, the properties were confiscated on Tuesday. The seized properties include 9 marlas of land in Peeran Bagh village and another parcel measuring two Kanal seven sarsai in Salimpur Arian village, both registered under the name of accused Gurwinder Singh alias Baba from Gurdaspur district, Punjab.

Furthermore, a two-kanal, 10-marla plot of land in Jeobala village, registered under the name of Harbhinder Singh alias Pinder alias Dhillon from Tarn Taran district, Punjab, has also been attached. This action by the anti-terror agency was carried out under Section 33 (i) of the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act 1967.

NIA investigations have uncovered that Harbhinder Singh, along with an associate, aided accused Inderjit Singh in conducting reconnaissance of Comrade Balwinder Singh Sandhu’s residence as part of a conspiracy orchestrated by KLF militants operating in India and abroad.

“Gurwinder Singh alias Baba, in collaboration with Sukhmeet Pal Singh alias Sukh Bhikariwal, was involved in the supply of weapons used in the murder. Sukhmeet Pal Singh is closely associated with ‘designated individual terrorist’ Lakhbir Singh Rode,” stated the NIA.

Both Harbhinder Singh and Gurwinder Singh were charged by the NIA in December 2021. Additionally, a supplementary chargesheet was filed against Gurwinder on January 2, 2023, with added charges.

The case, initially registered as an FIR at Bhikhiwind Police Station in Tarn Taran on October 16, 2020, was taken over by the NIA on January 26, 2021, and re-registered under various sections of the Indian Penal Code, the Arms Act, and the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act.