New Delhi [India], May 11 (ANI): The National Investigation Agency (NIA) on Sunday apprehended Kashmir Singh Galwaddi, a key Khalistani operative linked to the foreign-based Babbar Khalsa terrorist Harwinder Singh Sandhu alias Rinda. Galwaddi, one of the hardened criminals who escaped during the 2016 Nabha jail break, was arrested from Motihari in Bihar with the cooperation of local police.
According to the NIA, Galwaddi, a resident of Ludhiana, Punjab, had been actively involved with designated Khalistani terrorists, including Rinda, since his escape from Nabha jail. The agency stated that Galwaddi was an important figure in the Babbar Khalsa International (BKI) and Rinda’s terror network in Nepal. He had been aiding the group by providing shelter, logistical support, and terror funding to associates who had fled to Nepal after executing various terror acts in India, including the RPG attack at the Punjab Police Intelligence Headquarters.
The NIA registered a terror conspiracy case suo motu in August 2022 to investigate the activities of members and leaders of banned terror groups such as BKI, Khalistan Liberation Force (KLF), and International Sikh Youth Federation (ISYF). During the investigation, the NIA uncovered a terror-criminal nexus, suggesting that these groups, along with organized criminal gangs, were involved in smuggling arms, ammunition, explosives, and IEDs across the border to execute terror attacks within the country.
Galwaddi had been declared a proclaimed offender by an NIA special court in the 2022 terror conspiracy case, with non-bailable arrest warrants issued against him over the past few years. The agency had also announced a cash reward of Rs 10 lakh for information leading to his arrest.
Earlier in July 2023, the NIA filed a chargesheet against nine accused individuals, including Rinda and Landa, followed by two supplementary chargesheets against six others. In August 2024, the NIA managed to extradite Landa’s brother, Tarsem Singh, from the UAE and filed a third supplementary chargesheet against him in December.
The successful arrest of Galwaddi marks a significant breakthrough in the ongoing investigation into Khalistani terror networks operating from abroad. (ANI)
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