Harmeet Singh alias 'Happy PhD', who was also allegedly involved in the murders of Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) leaders in Punjab in 2016-2017, was killed at the Dera Chahal gurdwara near Lahore on Monday afternoon.
He was wanted in India in several cases, and involved in the smuggling of weapons and drugs from Pakistan. Punjab police officials are yet to confirm the killing or the motive behind it.
Singh was accused of targeted killings of right-wing leaders and followers of Dera Sacha Sauda in Punjab. However, his involvement in drugs smuggling was not previously known.
Singh was a resident of Chheharta in Amritsar and had a doctorate that earned him the alias “PhD”. He was living in Pakistan for two decades.
Officials said he was believed to have assumed the role of KLF chief after the outfit’s head, Harminder Mintoo, was held by Punjab Police from Thailand in 2014. Mintoo, who later escaped from the Nabha jail with a group of gangsters but was detained again, died of cardiac arrest in jail in April 2018.
In October, acting on India’s information, the Interpol issued “red notices” against at least eight Khalistan-linked terrorists based in different countries. Singh, alias “Happy PhD”, was in the list.