The National Investigation Agency (NIA) intensified its investigation into the attacks on the Indian consulate in San Francisco by Sikh extremists earlier this year, conducting raids at 14 locations across Punjab and Haryana on Wednesday. The Ministry of Home Affairs entrusted the counter-terrorism agency with this responsibility.
In a detailed statement released on Wednesday, the NIA revealed that the raids yielded “incriminating documents” linked to the accused involved in the attacks on March 19 and July 2, 2023, on the San Francisco consulate in the US. The central probe agency highlighted the seriousness of the incidents, describing them as criminal trespass, vandalism, damage to public property, and attempts to harm consulate officials and set the building on fire through arson.
“The locations raided by NIA today were spread across the districts of Moga, Jalandhar, Ludhiana, Gurdaspur, Mohali, and Patiala in Punjab, and Kurukshetra and Yamunanagar in Haryana. The crackdown led to the seizure of digital data containing information related to the accused persons, along with other incriminating documents,” read the NIA statement.
The agency had sent a team to San Francisco in August to investigate the case, releasing images of 10 probable suspects the following month. These suspects were accused of criminal trespass, damage to public property, and attacking consulate officials, causing fear among the staff and community.
The NIA emphasized that its investigation aimed to “identify and prosecute the attackers and the assailants of the attacks and send a strong message to such anti-Indian elements”. The Indian consulate in San Francisco faced two attacks in quick succession this year, drawing widespread condemnation from US legislators.
On March 19, pro-Khalistan protesters damaged the consulate and attempted to set it ablaze, raising pro-Khalistan slogans and installing two Khalistani flags inside the premises. The 2 July attack, captured in a purported video, displayed the words “Violence Begets Violence” and featured news articles related to the death of Khalistan Tiger Force (KTF) chief Hardeep Singh Nijjar, who was gunned down outside a Vancouver gurdwara on June 18.
Nijjar's killing sparked a diplomatic row between India and Canada, with Prime Minister Justin Trudeau suggesting a potential link between Indian agents and Nijjar's death in September, a claim India dismissed as “absurd and motivated”.
The NIA's ongoing efforts include crowd-sourcing information to identify and collect details about US-based entities and individuals involved in these violent incidents. The agency has identified individuals connected to the conspiracy behind the repeated attacks, including both Indian and foreign nationals.
Premises of AAP MLA’s Associate Searched
The NIA, on Wednesday morning, conducted searches at the premises of Sarabjit Singh Kang — a former leader of Lok Insaf Party, and currently a close associate of Aam Aadmi Party’s MLA from Payal Manwinder Singh Giaspura.
While the NIA team remained tight-lipped about the specifics of their investigation, Kang maintained that the searches were related to verifying his links with Chacha Baghel Singh in the USA.
It has been learnt that the NIA’s interest was piqued by a video featuring Kang ‘live’ with Chacha Baghel Singh of the USA, prompting surprise checks at residential and professional premises in Bahomajra village near Khanna and surrounding areas.
The federal investigative agency’s team concluded their operation after approximately two hours, emphasizing that the searches aimed to inquire about potential connections between Kang and individuals with hardline stances residing in foreign countries.
Kang, interacting with the media, said that the NIA sleuths searched his premises for about two hours, focusing on his alleged links with Baghel Singh in the US. He informed that he had provided the investigators with complete information about his social and business activities, along with details of his relatives settled in the USA.
