Chandigarh ‘grenade blast’: Key perpetrator held, 2nd accused identified, say cops

On Thursday, Chandigarh Police announced a reward of Rs 2 lakh for any information leading to the arrest of two suspects involved in the low-intensity explosion at a house in Sector 10.

The blast took place on Wednesday evening and the owner of the house claimed that two people in an autorickshaw had hurled a “grenade”. The auto-rickshaw driver, who was hired by the two suspects from Sector 43, has been apprehended, a police official said. The police also released a picture of the two suspects.

As a retired Punjab police officer, Jaskirat Singh Chahal, who is believed to be the target of the alleged grenade attack, the Punjab Police enhanced his security detail by deploying two additional personnel. Chahal lived on rent in that house till over a year ago.

There was no casualty in the explosion but some windows and flower pots were damaged, according to the police. The house belongs to K K Malhotra, a retired principal of an institute based in Himachal Pradesh. The police received information about the blast around 5:30 pm on Wednesday. Visuals of the explosion and the autorickshaw were captured on a CCTV camera installed in the area. About the veracity of the claim that a grenade was lobbed at the house, the SSP had said that the police were investigating it.

In October last year, the police had arrested two persons who a Punjab police officer said had come to eliminate Chahal at the behest of Passian and Rinda. Days later, their two more associates were arrested by the police for providing them logistical support.

In a purported social media post, the screenshot of which went viral Thursday, a user with an account name Happy Pashia (in Punjabi language) claimed responsibility for the “grenade attack”. While there was no loss of life in the attack, the purported post read that “SP Gurkirat (sic) Chahal and his gunman were blown up and given due punishment in remembrance of Sikhs martyred in 1986 in Nakodar. The post with a footnote of ‘Babbar Khalsa International’ had along with a title, Saka Nakodar 1986 de Sikh shaheed (Sikh martyrs of Saka Nakodar 1986), photographs of four Sikhs who were killed in indiscriminate police firing in Nakodar in February 1986 while participating in a peaceful protest against the sacrilege of Guru Granth Sahib.

Chahal, who retired as Superintendent of Police from 3rd commando battalion of Punjab Police in 2015, was Nakodar Station House Officer (SHO) at that time in 1986. He has been ‘a target’ of Sikh militants for his ‘role’ in 1986 Nakodar incident.

Chahal told The Indian Express over the phone that “names of Rinda and Passian” as the masterminds had come up during police interrogation of the accused arrested last year for doing “recce” of the Sector 10 house he lived in.

“When the accused were arrested last year, I had already shifted to another place,” said Chahal who lived in the Sector 10 house for “six years” before shifting. Chahal said he learnt from the police at that time (last year) that another retired SP too was on the target of the arrested accused.

A senior Punjab police officer said it was not during the recce, but the accused were arrested when they had actually come to eliminate the retired police officer. The interrogation of the accused who were arrested in October last year revealed that they had done a “recce” in the last week of September.

Hailing from a village in Kapurthala district, Chahal continues to live in Chandigarh after shifting from a rented house in Sector 10, while he also has a house in Jalandhar.

“After getting relieved from the service, I have been living in Chandigarh only. Last year, I shifted to another house in Chandigarh,” said Chahal.

He said that his security has been enhanced after the Thursday incident. “I had three security personnel. Now I have been provided two more, taking the total number of security personnel to five,” he added.

In the recent past, the Punjab Police has busted a number of terror modules allegedly operated by Rinda and Passian, arresting operatives who were tasked to carry out target killings.

In July, the Punjab Police arrested “a foot soldier” working for the Babbar Khalsa International (BKI)-backed terror module operated by Passia along with Rinda and Italy-based associate Resham Singh. The police claimed to have thwarted possible target killings with his arrest.

In March, the police busted a terror module operated by Passian along with Rinda and Armenia- based associate Shamsher Singh, alias Shera, with the arrest of two persons. The police said the accused were tasked to carry out target killings in the state as the module was working to radicalise the youth by motivating them to carry anti-national activities in the state.

In January, another key operative working for Passian and Rinda was nabbed. The accused, who faced a number of criminal cases, was wanted in UAPA case registered against him in Fazilka in September 2023, was arrested following a joint operation by the Punjab Police and Central agencies.