Ayodhya: Ahead of the pran pratishtha of Ram Lalla’s idol at the Ram temple in Ayodhya, the Uttar Pradesh Anti-Terrorist Squad (ATS) Friday said it had arrested three suspects who are allegedly linked to Babbar Khalsa International leader Lakhbir Singh Landa and his associates.
The suspects were allegedly carrying out a recce of Ayodhya at the behest of Gurpatwant Singh Pannun, founder of the banned outfit Sikhs for Justice (SFJ).
The ATS has identified the suspects as Shankar Lal Dusad, Ajit Kumar Sharma and Pradeep Punia. It said the three — who had allegedly been moving around in a Scorpio with a flag that said “Jai Shri Ram” — were directed by Landa to send maps of Ayodhya in order to organise an “incident”.
The ATS has lodged an FIR against the accused under Indian Penal Code sections 419 (cheating by personation), 420 (cheating), 467 (forging a document purporting to be valuable security or a will, or an authority), 468 (committing forgery, intending that the document or electronic record forged shall be used for purpose of cheating), 471 (using fraudulently or dishonestly as genuine any document or electronic record), 120B (criminal conspiracy) and 121A (conspiracy to wage war).
Dusad and Punia are residents of Rajasthan’s Sikar district, while Sharma is a resident of Jhunjhun in the same state.
According to a statement issued by the ATS Friday, Dusad has seven FIRs lodged against him between 2007 and 2014. These include an FIR for allegedly assaulting a person, firing, wine smuggling, the murder of a Congress leader and an Arms Act case.
“During his incarceration in Bikaner jail, Dusad got in touch with another inmate called Lakhvinder who connected him with his nephew Pamma. During his conversations with Pamma, the latter ((unidentified criminal) gave him the contact of Canada-based Sukhwinder Singh alias Sukha Duneke. Duneke also told him that Lawrence Bishnoi was involved in the murders of several people of their gang and that Dusad should help them in exacting revenge for the same,” the ATS said.
Duneke was reportedly killed in September 2023 in Canada by an unidentified person.
According to the ATS, Dusad revealed during questioning that, at the behest of Pannun, Landa had asked the three to recce Ayodhya, send maps and wait for his directions.
“He had told them that material will be provided to them accordingly and this is why they had been moving around Ayodhya in a car with a Jai Shri Ram flag so that no one doubts them,” the ATS quoted him as having revealed during questioning.
The ATS also said it had recovered two fake Aadhaar cards with different names and photos of Dusad, SIM cards purchased at the address of a resident of Sikar and a Scorpio (HR51BX3753) registered in the name of a resident of Faridabad.
In the audio message in possession with ThePrint, Pannun purportedly said: “Your police have arrested two pro-Khalistan youth from Ayodhya today. They are being tortured and false cases have been filed against them. Hindu terrorist Yogi (referring to Yogi Adityanath), Sikhs for Justice is going to hold you accountable on 22 January. The Ram Mandir ceremony is not going to save you from SFJ. Message is from Gurpatwant Singh Pannun, SFJ general counsel.”
(Edited by Richa Mishra)