Malaysia: Sikh militant groups' new base

Sikh militant groups are all set to strike India with a vengeance, reports Vicky Nanjappa.

At the recently concluded security seminar comprising all state police chiefs held in New Delhi, the officials of the Intelligence Bureau voiced their concerns about the growing threat of Sikh militancy. Minister of State for Home Affairs Ajay Maken too made a statement to the media recently expressing similar concerns.

While the government of India has directed the respective police forces to increase sustained vigilance along the borders, and increasing mechanisms for intelligence gathering and mordenisation of the force, the primary Sikh militant group has moved base to Malaysia from where it has decided to launch attacks on Indian soil.

The Punjab police and the IB say that they have already started to infiltrate cadres into the country. Since the past three months, the police have managed to seize 30 kilograms of RDX from various operatives.

The transition of moving base from Pakistan to Malaysia was made nearly six months back. Pakistani spy agency Inter Services Intelligejnce, which backs these forces, is very protective of them and thinks that re-launching these groups on India soil is their biggest possible trump card.

The ISI had juggled their (Sikh militants groups') base between Nepal and even Germany, but realised that Malaysia was the best since these groups have a lot of sympathisers in that country.

Moreover the ISI sponsored terrorist groups, such as the Lashkar-e-Tayiba too, has a very strong base in Malaysia -- thus making it easy for them to operate.

The intelligence available on these groups suggest that they have been maintaining a low profile since they are yet to establish all their cells in the country.

However, they won't remain quiet for a long time and are likely to make a big strike to announce their arrival.

Apart from carrying out a series of attacks in Punjab, the main task that has been handed out to them is the Commonwealth Games in New Delhi.

Although there are no specific inputs with regard to the Delhi CWG being the target of these groups, the police say that at the moment these groups are best equipped to carry out such an attack. Moreover the ISI too would be looking to use newer groups as that would involve an element of surprise.

Groups to watch out for:

Babbar Khalsa International: The first unit of the BKI was founded in Canada in 1981 under the leadership of late Talwinder Singh Parmar and the objective is to form an independent Sikh state called Khalistan.

The major incidents by this group involves the mid air explosion of the Air India Flight 182 in 1985, in which 329 persons were killed.

This group also carried out the assassination of former Punjab chief minister Beant Singh. Wadhwa Singh and his deputy Mehal Singh head this group, and both of them figure in India's terror dossier to Pakistan.

International Sikh Youth Federation: This outfit was founded at the United Kingdom in the year 1984 immediately after operation Blue Star. Headed Lakhbhir Singh Rhode, the nephew of slain controversial Sikh leader Sant Jarnail Singh Bhindranwale, their primary objective is to set up a separate Sikh state. 

With direct lineages to the Lashkar-e-Tayiba, this group has primarily been involved in fund raising in foreign countries and also providing logistic support.

Khalistan Commando Force: Founded by Manbir Singh Chaheru in 1986, this group too is fighting for a separate Sikh land. Headed presently by one of India's top wanted criminals, Paramjeet Singh Panjwar, this group has directly been involved in battling the Indian army after Operation Blue Star.

This group was also involved in the assasination of General Arun Vaidya who led the Indian Forces in Operation Blue Star and also an attack on a train at Punjab in which 50 persons were killed.

Khalistan Zindabad Force: Headed by the deadly Ranjeet Singh Neeta, this force came to the spotlight in the 1980s when it stepped up the ante to battle Indian troops after Operation Blue Star.

Comprising mostly Jammu-based Sikhs, this group focuses mainly in the areas of Jammu and Delhi apart from providing support to other groups in Punjab.

Both the IB and police reports specifically mention that it is this group which is most likely to carry out an attack during the CWG, since it specialises in Delhi areas.

Known more for carrying out bomb blasts rather than fidayeen styled attacks, the chief of this outfit is directly under the control of the ISI.

With the help of the ISI, this group has already managed to smuggle in 15 kilograms of RDX through the Nepal border. However, this route has been busted and the group has moved operations to Malaysia.