Former terrorist sent in four-day police remand

A former terrorist convicted in the 1991 Kalyan railway station blast case in Mumbai, Ravinder Singh alias Bittu, was today sent to a four-day police custody by a court here in a drug smuggling case.
Two other alleged drug smugglers, Gurpartap Singh and Husan Lal alias Johni, were sent to judicial custody.
The trio was arrested by the police from in and around Phagwara on the intervening night of Monday and Tuesday and around 300 grams of smack was recovered from their possession.
Informing about the development at a press meet here, Phagwara SP Jasbir Singh Rai claimed that Bittu belonged to the Khalistan Commando Force's Jaffarwal faction (KCF-Jaffarwal) and was an expert in making "indigenous" bombs.

He said Bittu, along with two other terrorists, Pardhan Singh Bhuchar and Nishan Singh Mehindipur of KCF, was involved in the Kalyan railway station blast on November 8, 1991 in which 12 persons were killed and 65 injured.
He said during preliminary questioning, Bittu confessed to having adopted a false name, Sarwan Singh, and pretended to have belonged to Shero village in Patti in Tarn Taran district, while his real name was Ravinder Singh and he hailed from Saidpur village in Patti.

He lived in the house of one Jagtar Singh at Arvind Nagar in Chandanpur, Maharashtra, the SP said.

Bittu was also involved in two petrol pump robberies and killing of three policemen, including an ASI, at Muhadipur in Maharashtra on October 25, 1991, the SP said.
He had got a driving license issued in his name and started driving a truck, which also served as his dwelling place at times, the SP added.
Bittu was convicted in the Kalyan blast case and awarded a life term. He had come out on a 28-day parole in 2007 but was declared a proclaimed offender after he did not return, he said.
"We are looking into his recent activities, places where he lived and those associated with him since 2007," said Rai, adding that whether he was part of any terror organisation or was only dealing in drugs was also being investigated.

Punjab police has asked for a dossier and the case files of Bittu from Mumbai police which was informed of his arrest, said the SP.
Meanwhile, SSP Rajinder Singh has formed a four-member Special Investigation Team (SIT) led by Rai to question Bittu.