Highlights:
- Nishan Singh, the man who allegedly helped RPG attackers detained by Punjab Police
- Unverified voice message hints at the involvement of Gurpatwant Singh Pannu of the banned outfit Sikhs For Justice.
- Police suspect it to be a terrorist attack aimed at the heart of the intelligence system of the Punjab police.
A rocket-propelled grenade was fired at the third floor of the heavily guarded Intelligence Wing Headquarters in Mohali. A Russian rocket launcher purportedly used in the attack was found from a plot on the Old Sohna road, less than 1km from the blast site. The Director-General of Police revealed that the explosive used in the RPG was TNT (trinitrotoluene). Harwinder Singh, alias Rinda, a Pak-based terrorist, is the alleged mastermind behind the attack. However, an unverified voice message hints at Gurpatwant Singh Pannu of the banned outfit Sikhs For Justice.
18-20 suspects were rounded up for the investigation by the Punjab Police. Mohali was under high alert a day after the attack. Mohali SSP Vivek Sheel Soni conveyed that the police are very close to cracking the case and that the authenticity of the voice message from Gurpatwant Singh is being examined. 6-7K mobile data dumps from mobile towers in proximity to the Intelligence headquarters are being scrutinised. CCTV footage points at the possible use of a Maruti Suzuki Swift by the culprits of the RPG attack.
Nishan Singh, who is already facing five cases, including dacoity and under the Arms Act in Faridkot and Tarn Taran, has been detained by the police for alleged logistics support to some suspects who fired the RPG. Nishan purportedly sheltered two other accused in Amritsar for three days before the RPG attack.
On the other hand, certain officials claim that this might be the brainchild of Harwinder Singh, who uses his network of criminals to smuggle drugs and weapons into the state and carry out the attacks. It was also mentioned that drones were being used to smuggle weapons into the state. Lately, 10kg of RDX was discovered by the Police from various locations. The blast site was inspected by teams of the NIA (National Investigation Agency) and the Intelligence Bureau.
NIA, NSG and Army officials inspected the site to supplement the investigation. When questioned about whether the police were officially treating it like a terror attack, DGP VK Bhawra disclosed that TNT was used in the attack. Still, there were no casualties since it was evening when this happened.
Mohali SP (Headquarters) Ravinder Pal Singh mentioned that it was evident that this was a terrorist attack aimed at the heart of the intelligence system of the Punjab police.
An FIR under Section 307 (attempt to murder) of the IPC, Section 3 of the Explosive Substances Act Against Unknown People and Section 16 of the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act has been registered by the Punjab Police. The FIR was filed based on a statement made by SI Balkar Singh, the intelligence headquarters’ security chief.
