Lawrence Bishnoi gang members held for ‘Independence Day terror plot', police say
Additional Director General of Police (Crime Branch) Dinesh MN said that Jitendra Chaudhary, a native of Tonk, Sanjay, a native of Hanumangarh district, and Sonu alias Kali, from Kapurthala, Punjab, apart from three minors, were picked up from Jaipur and Tonk districts last week and handed over to Special Operation Cell, Amritsar, Punjab Police. The accused were wanted in connection with a July 7 blast in Nawanshahr, Punjab.
The ADG said that in order to spread terror and extort money, the henchmen of Lawrence Bishnoi gang had thrown a grenade in front of a liquor shop in Nawanshahr and fled to Rajasthan. The Punjab Police had lodged a case under Bharatiya Nyay Sanhita (BNS) sections 49 (abetment outside India for offence in India), 55 (abetment of offence punishable with death or imprisonment for life), 61 (2) (Criminal conspiracy) as well as sections of the Arms Act.
He said that a team led by Siddhant Sharma, Additional Superintendent of Police, Anti-Gangster Task Force (AGTF), was sent to Jaipur Range and Ajmer Range, following the Nawanshahr blast. 'The team concealed its identity and, without caring for their lives, worked hard to collect intelligence about the wanted and arrested them on August 10,' the ADG said.
'Upon interrogation, it was found that they are associated with Lawrence Bishnoi gang and that their handler is Zeeshan Akhtar, who lives in Canada and had taken responsibility for the murder of Baba Siddique in Mumbai,' he said, adding that Zeeshan Akhtar, Pakistani gangster Shahzad Bhatti, Babbar Khalsa International (BKI) terrorist Manu Agwan and Gopi Nawanshahria are all allegedly connected with each other.
'They carry out criminal activities in different parts of the country and contact local youth by luring them with money to commit the crime. The accused in the present case are connected with Zeeshan Akhtar through Instagram and other online apps. Zeeshan Akhtar had also provided grenades to the accused for the Nawanshahr blast. He used to give instructions to them through online applications. He had also instructed them to carry out blasts in Delhi and Gwalior, Madhya Pradesh, on Independence Day, August 15,' the ADG said.
In June, Mumbai police had said that Zeeshan Akhtar, who is one of the main accused in the murder case of NCP leader and former Maharashtra minister Baba Siddique, has been detained in Canada. However, there has been little clarity on the case or Akhtar's whereabouts since then.
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