Khalistan Tiger Force and Jammu and Kashmir Ghaznavi Force declared as terrorist organisations

Tags: National National News

The central government on 17 February declared Khalistan Tiger Force, and Jammu and Kashmir Ghaznavi Force as terrorist organisations under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA). 

An overview of the news

• Apart from this, Punjab resident Harvinder Singh Sandhu alias Rinda, the mastermind of the 2021 attack on the intelligence headquarters of Punjab Police, has been declared a terrorist.

• The government has so far designated 54 individuals as terrorists and 44 organisations as terrorist organisations.

Khalistan Tiger Force

• It came into existence in 2011 as an offshoot of terrorist organization Babbar Khalsa International.

• It is a banned organisation under the Unlawful Activities Prevention Act (UAPA).

• It is a militant organization whose aim is to revive militancy in Punjab.

• This organisation is promoting various acts of terrorism including targeted killings in Punjab.

• Its agenda is the formation of a separate state of Khalistan.

Jammu and Kashmir Ghaznavi Force (JKGF)

• It has been formed with cadres of terrorist organisations like Lashkar-e-Taiba and Jaish-e-Mohammed.

• It has been found involved in infiltration attempts, smuggling of narcotics and arms and carrying out terrorist attacks in Jammu and Kashmir.

• It draws its cadres from Lashkar-e-Taiba, Jaish-e-Mohammed, Tehreek-ul-Mujahideen, Harkat-ul-Jihad-e-Islami and various banned terrorist organisations.

Harvinder Singh Sandhu alias Rinda

• He hails from Lahore and is associated with the banned Babbar Khalsa International (BKI), a terrorist-designated group.

• He is accused of masterminding the attack on the intelligence headquarters of the Punjab Police in 2021.

• He has direct links with Pakistan-based terrorist groups and is also involved in large-scale smuggling of drugs, arms, ammunition and militant hardware.

• He has been involved in various crimes like murder, attempt to murder, contract killing, dacoity and extortion in Punjab, Maharashtra, Haryana, West Bengal, Himachal Pradesh and Madhya Pradesh.

• He is the 54th person to be declared a terrorist by the government.