India asks UK for details on suspects, aides involved in violence at London Mission
Under the MLAT, either country can approach the other for collecting evidence against an accused.
External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar with UK Foreign Secretary David Cameron on the latter’s first day in office. (PTI) INDIA HAS sought from authorities in the UK evidence against suspects who were involved in the violence at the Indian High Commission in London during a pro-Khalistan protest on March 19. The National Investigation Agency (NIA) has made a request under the Mutual Legal Assistance Treaty (MLAT) to authorities in the UK, asking them to share specific details of the suspects and their aides.
In a related development, the NIA has prepared a separate proposal, seeking details from the US on those who targeted the Indian Consulate in San Francisco on July 2.
Sources in the Union Ministry of Home Affairs said that after visiting the UK and collecting several pieces of evidence, the NIA got some crucial leads about the March 19 violence. “To get more details related with the case, a set of 24 queries have been sent under the MLAT in which it has been asked about the protest, organisers of the protest, their credentials, their permission,” a source said.
Under the MLAT, either country can approach the other for collecting evidence against an accused.
In April, the MHA had directed the NIA to file a fresh case in connection with the London protests after preliminary investigation pointed to a terror link involving Pakistan’s ISI. The ministry had also directed Delhi Police, which had registered an FIR under the UAPA, to hand over the probe to the NIA.
In May, an NIA team visited the UK and collected crucial evidence, including CCTV footage. Days after returning to India, they released five videos of the violence, asking the general public to help identify the suspects who tried to vandalise the High Commission. The agency received more than 1,050 calls in response, sources said.
Another official said that the Research and Analysis Wing (R&AW) also helped the NIA probe team to identify the suspects. “The NIA has identified 15 attackers issued a Look Out Circular against some of them,” an official said.
In the FIR, complainant Kiran Kumar Vasant Bhosale, assistant personnel and welfare officer at the High Commission, mentioned names of three persons – Avtar Singh alias Khanda, Gurcharan Singh and Jasvir Singh. “Khanda died in Birmingham in June,” an official said.
The NIA questioned Waris Punjab De chief Amritpal Singh and nine of his associates in Assam’s Dibrugarh jail in connection with the UK incident after it was found they were in touch with Khanda.
Meanwhile, in connection with the protest in San Francisco, an NIA team visited the US in August. “We have identified some attackers with the help of CCTV footage and opened Look Out Circular against some of them. We are preparing queries for MLAT,” said an official.
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