Chandigarh: CCTV recorded a grenade attack at the home of volunteer-activist of the BJP, Manoranjan Kalia, in Jalandhar, and shook the surrounding. About 2 am, the footage shows two men on an e-rickshaw passing the BJP leader's house and one of the men throwing something over the wall, which is followed by a massive blast.
Though the explosion was huge, nothing was reported about any injuries. However, considerable damage was done to the BJP leader's vehicles and to the windows, as well as partitions inside his house. The attack occurred at a time when the former minister was fast asleep and woke him up with the explosion he presumed was from an electrical transformer. Nevertheless, on realizing what the incident involved, Kalia exclaimed in horror at its seriousness.
The Punjab police swung into action, and 12 hours after the attack, both accused were arrested. The e-rickshaw that was used to commit the crime was seized. Investigation revealed that mastermind behind this attack was none other than Zeeshan Akhtar, associated with notorious gangster Lawrence Bishnoi. Akhtar is also a wanted criminal in the case related with murder of NCP leader Baba Siddiqui.
Worse still, police sources allege the attack to the ISI of Pakistan, stating that the purpose to be served lies in disturbing the religious harmony in Punjab. This adds to the long streak of such recent bombings of the state that have raised alarms concerning law and order. The government reportedly has called for immediate resignation of Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Singh Mann from opposition parties like the BJP for the failure of his government in maintaining security.
The greater headway came when Babbar Khalsa International terrorist Happy Passia accepted responsibility for the strike, indicating a possible link between the Lawrence Bishnoi gang and Khalistan terrorists. This is happening at a time when there are fears of a new spike in blasts taking place in Punjab, with the last year spearheading more than twelve explosions, most of which were directed at police installations. Now, investigative agencies of security are revamping their efforts to get clues on this front.
[Source Credit: NDTV]
