Sikh militants set up base in M'sia, says Punjab police

The ruthless Khalistan Liberation Force (KLF), a Sikh separatist group, is suspected to have set up base outside Kuala Lumpur, with at least four of its militants in hiding in Malaysia.

The KLF has set up a base in Malaysia to enable the four militants to canvass for support, claim the Punjab police.

The police said they obtained the "vital clue" on the KLF base in Malaysia following the arrest of a suspected miltant at a guest-house in Patiala district (Punjab) last Monday.

They said the 22-year-old man was linked to a series of bombings in the state, early this year, adding that he was suspected of planting bombs outside a LPG bottling plant in Nabha and the Halwara Air Force station in Punjab.

Intelligence reports reveal he fled to Malaysia, where he sought shelter from another wanted KLF militant who had been residing in Seremban for some time.

"The suspect was staying in Seremban for about a year. We are very much sure the KLF has set up a base in Malaysia because these boys (militants) are going there to get support.

"The suspect had travelled to Thailand by road and later flew to Pakistan to get arms training. Definitely, they are using Malaysia to carry out their activities," Patiala senior superintendent of police Ranbir Singh Khatra told Bernama when contacted by telephone today.

Last Monday's arrest, coupled with the discovery of 15kg RDX from another Sikh militant, of the Khalistan Zindabad Force on July 23, has left the police in a tizzy.

Intelligence agencies now suspect Sikh terrorists based outside Punjab were preparing to create mayhem in Delhi before the Commonwealth Games later this October.

Armed struggle

A recent Punjab police intelligence advisory further justified their anxiety: "Certain militants sitting abroad are desperate to push four Sikh extremists into India to carry out nefarious activities."

The KLF movement was started by Sikh hardliners who staged an armed struggle against the Indian government in the 1980s-1990s, seeking a separate Sikh homeland - to be called 'Khalistan'.

Although the group was crushed by Punjab police and later disintegrated, remnants of KLF members now operate from outside India, supported by foreign elements, to strike terror on Indian soil.

"We suspect, at least four more militants are still hiding in Malaysia. We will get the help of the Indian federal government, Interpol and the Indian Embassy in Kuala Lumpur to arrest them," said Khatra.

At the peak of its reign, the violent separatist movement hijacked the Srinagar-Delhi bound Indian Airlines flight to Lahore, Pakistan, with 255 passengers on board in 1984.

- Bernama