Chandigarh: In a second terror incident in Punjab this year, unidentified persons lobbed an explosive at the residence of late liquor contractor and Congress leader Rajinder Kumar near Amritsar Wednesday night.
Kumar’s family was not at home when the bomb was hurled inside the building compound by three motorcycle-borne persons, closed-circuit television footage has shown.
The liquor contractor, who was once chairman of the zila parishad, passed away last November. Former Congress chief minister Charanjit Singh Channi and senior Akali leader Bikram Singh Majithia had attended his last rites.
In a Facebook post that surfaced Thursday, the Babbar Khalsa International (BKI), a militant outfit run by US-based gangster-turned-militant Harpreet Singh alias Happy Passia, claimed responsibility for the attack.
The BKI’s post said they had asked the contractor several times to stop selling liquor but he had not listened. “He was selling alcohol to vends near gurdwaras and schools which is unacceptable,” added the post.
“We will start burning down liquor vends if this practice continues. People working in these vends should be warned. People of Punjab should not buy liquor from such vends and promote corporatisation, instead they should distill their own liquor in their houses,” the post further said.
Deputy Inspector General (Border Range) Satinder Singh told thePrint the attack was similar to other explosions that had taken place in the recent past. “Our teams are on the job… We are also looking at the veracity of BKI’s claim. Most explosives used in these blasts have been delivered to Punjab through drones from across the border,” Singh said.
He added those hired to carry out the attacks were drug addicts, many of whom were involved in cases of petty crimes. “When they are contacted by their handlers, they are promised lakhs of rupees. However, what these youngsters actually get are barely a few thousands. All of them are eventually caught,” the DIG said.
Meanwhile, Majithia took to ‘X’ to condemn the incident, questioning the “worsening” law and order in the state.
ਹੁਣ ਤੱਕ ਮਾਝੇ ਏਰੀਏ ਚ 10 ਤੋਂ ਵੱਧ ਗ੍ਰਨੇਡ ਹਮਲੇ ❗️❗️
👉ਹਲਕਾ ਮਜੀਠਾ 'ਚ ਦੂਜਾ BLAST ❗️
ਪਹਿਲਾਂ ਮਜੀਠੇ ਥਾਣੇ ਤੇ ਗ੍ਰਨੇਡ ਹਮਲਾ ❗️
👉ਹੁਣ ਮੇਰੇ ਪਰਿਵਾਰ ਦੇ ਮੈਂਬਰ ਪਿੰਡ ਜੈਤੀਂਪੁਰ 'ਚ ਸਵਰਗਵਾਸੀ ਪੱਪੂ ਜੈਂਤੀਪੁਰ ਦੇ ਘਰ ਤੇ ਗ੍ਰਨੇਡ RDX ਹਮਲਾ❗️❗️
👉 ਪਰਿਵਾਰ ਵਾਲ ਵਾਲ ਬਚਿਆ ❗️
ਇਸ ਪਰਿਵਾਰ ਨੂੰ (ਅਮਨ ਜੈਤੀਪੁਰ ਨੂੰ ) ਪਹਿਲਾਂ ਵੀ… pic.twitter.com/tNaRrJRRtx
— Bikram Singh Majithia (@bsmajithia) January 15, 2025
‘Rogue elements work for money’
Wednesday’s attack is the 14th in the series of similar terror attacks since last year.
Last year the series of attacks started on 11 September with a blast in a Sector 10 residence in Chandigarh, aimed at targeting a retired Punjab cop allegedly on the hit list of terror groups for many years.
Of the 14 attacks, most—nine—took place in quick succession in November and December, targeting police stations and establishments, and in some cases, petrol stations.
A senior police officer said Wednesday’s attack, though claimed by BKI, was a case of rogue elements terrorising people for extortion. “The earlier attacks on petrol stations were also cases of extortion. The attacks on police stations are, however, aimed at demoralising the police. The foot soldiers used in these attacks work for money and are not driven by any radical religious ideology,” he added.
The Punjab Police has been on an overdrive in the last few years to unravel terror modules in the state, the officer said. Incidentally, an explosive device was lobbed on the Gumtala police post just last week. Initially reported as a car-radiator burst, the explosion was later found to have been caused by a device thrown from an overbridge into the police post complex. It landed on a car. The BKI had claimed that its aides had lobbed a hand grenade on the police chowki.
According to police, of the 12 attacks that took place in 2024, seven were orchestrated by BKI, four by Khalistan Zindabad Force (KZF) and one by Khalistan Tiger Force (KTF). These cases were solved with the arrest of 24 accused, while three were killed in an encounter at Pilibhit in Uttar Pradesh on 23 December.
Police sources also told ThePrint that two petrol bomb attacks were carried out by the KZF in November-December in the homes of leaders associated with Hindu groups. They said this was an attempt by Pakistan’s Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) “to vitiate communal harmony in Punjab”.
Also Read: UP, Punjab police team gun down 3 Khalistani terrorists suspected in Gurdaspur grenade attack