Deported from Thailand, Khalistan terrorist, aide held in Delhi

Punjab Police Friday arrested Khalistan Liberation Force (KLF) chief and terrorist Harminder Singh alias Mintoo and his aide from the Delhi airport after he was deported from Thailand by the authorities there.

Punjab Police sources said Mintoo was tracked by police in Thailand's capital Bangkok. He was deported after the matter was pursued with the Thai authorities by Punjab Police and central agencies.

Police also arrested Mintoo's aide Gurpreet Singh, who was also deported from Thailand.

Mintoo is wanted in many terror cases in Punjab, and was planning terror strikes again in the region, the sources said.

"The KLF chief is wanted for 10 terrorist offences and his key aide Gurpreet Singh was tasked to execute a conspiracy of assassinating Hindu leaders in 2013, which was foiled by Punjab Police, and to disturb the hard-earned peace in Punjab," Punjab's Additional Director General of Police (Intelligence) Hardeep Singh Dhillon said here Friday.

"Punjab Police traced and located them in Thailand in coordination with central agencies. On Nov 7, they were brought from Thailand to New Delhi in coordination with Thai authorities and arrested at the Delhi airport by Punjab Police," Dhillon said.

The arrest of these two top KLF terrorists comes close on the heels of arrests of two other top terrorists, Rattandeep Singh, the chief of the Bhindranwale Tiger Force of Khalistan (BTFK), who was arrested from Gorakhpur in Uttar Pradesh Sep 17, and Khalistan Tiger Force (KTF) terrorist Ramandeep Singh, who was arrested at Chennai airport Nov 6 after being deported from Malaysia.

Two Punjab Police officers camped in Thailand for three weeks while tracking the terrorists there.

Harminder Singh was using a fake Malaysian passport issued in the name of Gurdeep Singh. The passport was issued in Ipoh, Malaysia. He also had a fake Malaysian identity card, Dhillon said.

Mintoo was trying to revive and strengthen the KLF with foreign-based supporters. He visited Pakistan and later travelled to Italy, Belgium, Germany, France and other European countries for 11 months between June 2013 and May 2014 before coming to southeast Asia.

Punjab Police came to know about the conspiracy to eliminate Hindu leaders in Punjab after sleeper cells were busted by police in the last one year.

Dhillon said Mintoo had close contacts with Pakistan's Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) officers.