Gurpatwant Singh Pannun has been charged under the stringent anti-terror law Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act.
All IndiaReported
by Mohammed Ghazali, Edited by Saikat
Kumar BoseUpdated: May 09, 2022 9:25 am IST
Dharamshala:
The leader of banned organisation
Sikhs for Justice has been named as the main accused in connection with the
appearance of 'Khalistan' banners and graffiti on the walls of Himachal Pradesh
Assembly in Dharamshala yesterday.
Gurpatwant Singh
Pannun has been charged under the stringent anti-terror law Unlawful Activities
(Prevention) Act. His organisation, Sikhs for Justice, was banned by the centre
in 2019 for anti-India activities.
Himachal Police have stepped up
security in the state after Sikhs for Justice gave a call for holding a
'Khalistan' referendum on June 6. Inter-state borders have been sealed and
security stepped at key government buildings.
" Keeping in view the incidents
of Khalistani elements in neighboring States and also incident of tying a Khalistani
banner took place in Una district on 11.04.2022 and
recent incident of hoisting banners
& graffiti of Khalistan on the outer boundary of Vidhan Sabha in
Dharamshala as well as the threat posed by Sikhs for Justice (SJF) regarding
announcement of 6th June, 2022 as voting date for Khalistan Referendum in
Himachal Pradesh, the DGP-HP has issued directions to the field formations to
remain on high alert from today," an order issued by state police chief
Sanjay Kundu said.
The order added that senior police
officers have been instructed to keep a close watch on possible hideouts of
members of the banned outfit, including hotels. They have also been directed to
keep bomb disposal squads and special units on standby for any emergency
situation.
Officers have been asked to sensitise
security personnel guarding all key buildings so that they inform police if
they spot anything suspicious.
Following the appearance of the
Khalistan banners and graffiti, Chief Minister Jairam Thakur had ordered an
investigation.
An intelligence alert issued on April
26 had warned of such an incident, sources said. The alert claimed that chief
of Sikhs for Justice, Gurupatwant Singh Pannu, had issued a letter to the
Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister, stating that a flag of Sikh extremist Jarnail
Singh Bhindranwale and 'Khalistan' would be hoisted in Shimla, sources said.
Himachal Pradesh's move to ban
vehicles carrying Bhindranwale and Khalistani flags had agitated the banned
outfit, it is learnt.
"I condemn the cowardly incident
of raising Khalistan flags at the gate of Dharamshala Assembly Complex in the
dark of night. Only winter session is held here, so there is a need for more
security arrangements only during that time," Chief Minister Thakur
tweeted in Hindi this morning.
"Taking advantage of this, this
cowardly incident has been carried out, but we will not tolerate it. This
incident will be investigated immediately and strict action will be taken
against the culprits. I would like to tell those people that if you have the
courage, then come out in the light of day, not in the dark of night," a
second tweet read.
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