As Amritpal Singh menace rises, Intel eyes his source of funding from Canada

The activation of the K2 Desk by the ISI was a major shift in strategy by Pakistan to revive the Khalistan movement and also keep Kashmir on the boil

India

oi-Vicky Nanjappa

The
violence
in
Punjab
last
week
by
the
followers
of
radical
Sikh
leader,
Amritpal
Singh
has
once
again
put
the
focus
back
on
the
links
to
the
Khalistan
movement
from
sources
abroad.

Pakistan’s
ISI
has
been
channelising
the
funds
into
Punjab
to
aide
the
revival
of
the
Khalistan
movement
from
the
United
States
and
Canada,
Intelligence
Bureau
officials
tell
OneIndia.

The
funds
are
being
largely
used
to
carry
out
propaganda
against
India.
An
NIA
probe
into
the
gangster-terrorist
nexus
also
revealed
that
funding
had
been
used
to
orchestrate
murders
in
Punjab.
The
modus
operandi
if
one
observes
closely
is
similar
to
the
one
in
the
80s,
where
a
large
number
of
non-Sikhs
were
killed
in
Punjab
in
a
spate
of
targeted
killings.

K
P
S
Gill
rightly
said
rise
of
AAP
will
lead
to
revival
of
Khalistan
in
Punjab

The
official
cited
above
also
said
that
the
likes
of
Amritpal
Singh
who
is
just
a
pawn
in
the
hands
of
the
ISI-controlled
gangsters
abroad
is
targeting
the
youth
of
Punjab
to
revive
the
movement.
It
is
a
well
oiled
mechanism,
explains
another
official.
While
the
gangsters
based
abroad
are
channelising
the
funds,
organisations
such
as
the
Sikhs
For
Justice
(SFJ)
carry
out
the
propaganda.

The
propaganda
includes
scribbling
anti-India
graffiti,
carrying
out
campaigns
on
the
social
media
and
rewarding
those
who
hoist
the
Khalistan
flag
outside
government
buildings.
The
SFJ
had
in
fact
announced
a
huge
reward
for
the
one
who
will
pull
down
the
tricolour
from
the
Red
Fort
and
hoist
the
Khalistan
flag.

Experts
say
that
the
Punjab
administration
must
play
a
more
proactive
role
when
it
comes
to
Amritpal
Singh.
The
problem
needs
to
be
acknowledged
in
an
honest
manner
and
the
youth
should
not
be
allowed
to
get
carried
away
by
such
movements,
the
experts
also
feel.

The
clash
at
Ajnala,
Punjab
is
a
clear
example
of
how
badly
the
Punjab
government
has
handled
the
situation.
Amritpal’s
supporters
who
were
armed
with
swords
and
guns
clashed
with
the
Punjab
Police
seeking
the
release
of
one
Lovepreet
Toofan.
The
police
in
fact
gave
into
the
protest
and
released
Toofan.
The
excuse
given
by
the
police
was
that
they
did
not
want
the
situation
to
go
out
of
control.

The
ugly
rise
of
Amritpal
Singh:
Has
AAP
proved
K
P
S
Gill’s
words
absolutely
right?

The
Intelligence
Bureau
is
also
keeping
a
close
watch
on
the
online
activities
of
the
pro-Khalistan
elements.
It
has
been
found
that
they
are
using
VPNs
located
to
Canada
and
Germany
to
spread
anti-India
sentiments.
These
posts
get
a
huge
amount
of
traction
and
the
worry
for
the
Indian
agencies
is
that
this
could
well
radicalise
the
youth,
who
spend
more
time
on
the
social
media.

For
the
ISI
this
operation
serves
its
purpose
both
in
Kashmir
as
well
as
Punjab.
This

portal
had
reported
that
the
ISI
has
activated
its
Kashmir-Khalistan
or
K2
Desk
to
carry
out
activities
in
Punjab
and
Kashmir.
The
K2
desk
comprises
the
Khalistan
Zindabad
Force
(KLF)
and
Jaish-e-Mohammad.
While
the
plotting
takes
place
in
Pakistan,
targeted
killings
of
non-Sikhs
and
terror
attacks
by
gangsters
have
been
outsourced
to
the
persons
sitting
in
countries
such
as
Canada,
Germany
and
the
United
States.