Chandigarh, April 18 (IANS) Punjab Police have solved the hand-grenade attack at Crime Investigation Agency (CIA) office in Nawanshahr by busting a major Pakistan-based terror module run by Harvinder Singh, alias Rinda, with the arrest of its three operatives, said Director General of Police V.K. Bhawra here on Monday.
Some persons on the night of November 7 and 8, 2021, had hurled a hand grenade with the intention to kill police officials. However, the officials present there had escaped unhurt.
Those arrested have been identified as Manish Kumar, a resident of village Bains in Nawanshahr, Ramandeep Singh of Jalandhar district and Pardeep Singh in SBS Nagar district. The police have also recovered one hand grenade from their possession.
Bhawra said after extensive and sustained investigation, the Counter Intelligence wing and the SBS Nagar police have arrested three accused.
During interrogation, Ramandeep confessed that he along with Manish had thrown the hand grenade on the directions of Harvinder Singh, said the DGP, while adding that Ramandeep had picked-up two hand grenades from the Ludhiana-Ferozepur Road as guided by Rinda.
Sandeep Kumar, Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) SBS Nagar, said while one han grenade was used for the attack in Nawanshahr, another P-80 hand grenade, similar to the one used to carry out the attack, was recovered on the disclosure of Ramandeep. Harvinder struck a deal with Ramandeep for Rs 4 lakh to carry out this attack, he added.
Harvinder Singh, a notorious gangster active in Punjab, Chandigarh, Maharashtra and Haryana, is a history-sheeter and wanted by Punjab Police in heinous crimes, including murder, contract killing, robbery, extortion and snatching.
The Supreme Court on Friday directed the Registrar General of Punjab and Haryana High Court to secure and preserve all records in connection with Prime Minister Narendra Modi's visit to Punjab, and also asked the state and Central committees to refrain from conducting inquiries till Monday, when it will take up the matter again.
India on Friday revised the existing guidelines for all international arrivals in India in view of the rising Covid cases and the Omicron threat, to make seven days home quarantine mandatory. The new guidelines will be effective from January 11 till further notice.
On Wednesday, the Prime Minister's rally in Ferozepur had to be cancelled due to a security lapse after some protesters blocked a route and forced his convoy to spend about 20 minutes on a flyover. The Prime Minister was enroute the National Martyrs Memorial at Hussainiwala when the incident happened.
On Thursday, senior BJP leaders including chief ministers of the party ruled states offered prayers at temples across the country for the well-being and long life of Prime Minister Modi after his security was breached in Punjab on January 5.
Most of these farmers had earlier stated that they were present at the spot but were not involved in the attack. They were, at that time, charged under bailable sections such as 'rioting' and 'voluntarily causing hurt' and were let off by the SIT officials under Section 41 of the CrPC.
The Congress is witnessing internal bickering on the issue of security breach of the Prime Minister and Congress MP from Punjab Manish Tewari has termed the incidence as most unfortunate and said the matter should be probed by a sitting High Court Judge.
