The Hindu : Front Page : Babbar Khalsa chief arrested

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Thursday, Jun 09, 2005

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Babbar Khalsa chief arrested

Staff Reporter

Theatre blasts accused also nabbed; huge quantity of RDX, ammunition recovered

Photo: Rajeev Bhatt

CAUGHT AT LAST: Babbar Khalsa International chief in India Jagtar Singh Hawara (second from right), charged with the murder of the former Punjab Chief Minister, Beant Singh, being brought to the Special Branch of the Delhi police on Wednesday. At right is Jaspal Singh, alleged mastermind behind the May 22 Delhi cinema twin blasts, and at left is his accomplice Vikas Sehgal.

NEW DELHI: Jagtar Singh Hawara, chief of the Babbar Khalsa International (BKI) in India, who made a dramatic escape from the Burail Jail in Chandigarh last year, and two accused in the blasts that rocked two cinema halls here were arrested at Narela early on Wednesday. The arrests followed an encounter with the Inter-State Cell of the Delhi police. A huge consignment of RDX and ammunition were recovered from them.

Addressing a press conference here on Wednesday, Delhi Police Commissioner K.K. Paul described it as one of the most successful operations carried out by the Cell so far. A team led by Inspectors Subhash Tandon, Pankaj Sood and Sandeep Malhotra was on the trail of the accused in the twin blasts when it was tipped-off about the duo's movement with Jagtar Singh, charged with the murder of the former Punjab Chief Minister, Beant Singh.

The team, under the supervision of Assistant Commissioner of Police Ravi Shankar, learnt that the three persons would come to the capital from Punjab in a brand-new Hyundai Accent around Monday midnight. The police laid a trap on G.T. Karnal Road in the Narela Industrial Area and in the early hours of Wednesday they spotted the vehicle without a number plate.

When the police tried to intercept the vehicle, they were fired at. The trio then tried to flee on foot. They were overpowered after a brief chase. They were identified as Jagtar Singh, Jaspal aka Raja, the mastermind behind the twin blasts in the capital, and his accomplice, Vikas Sehgal.

The police recovered 10.35 kg of RDX, four pistols of foreign make, 207 live cartridges, three remote-controlled explosive devices and a hand grenade from the vehicle.

"The accused said the BKI was trying to revive militancy in the country, especially in Punjab, " said Dr. Paul.

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