Arshdeep Singh Gill alias Arsh Dalla, who was designated a terrorist by India, is likely to have been arrested in Canada’s Ontario province following a shooting incident, sources claimed here on Sunday. The incident occurred on October 28 in Milton.
The Halton Regional Police Service (HRPS) had on October 29 said that it had arrested two men on charges of “discharging firearm with intent” following an investigation after the duo had come to a hospital and one of them was treated for a non-life-threatening gunshot and later discharged. It did not disclose their identity and said both accused “were held in custody pending a bail hearing”.
The sources claimed that one of those arrested is believed to be Arsh Dalla, who is associated with the banned Khalistan Tiger Force (KTF) and ran terror modules on behalf of Hardeep Singh Nijjar, a designated terrorist who was killed in June last year. “The HRPS was contacted by Guelph Police in the early morning hours of October 28, 2024, after two males attended a hospital in Guelph. One of the males was treated and released for a non-life-threatening gunshot wound apparently suffered in Halton region. The other was not injured.
“The HRPS Major Crime Bureau is now investigating and both males have been arrested. A 25-year-old male of Halton Hills and a 28-year-old male of Surrey BC have both been charged with Discharging Firearm with Intent,” a Halton police statement said, adding they were actively investigating the incident.
Earlier on Sunday, Punjab Police announced the arrest of two shooters of Arsh Dalla’s gang, who were allegedly involved in the murder of a Sikh activist last month, from Kharar in Mohali. Director General of Police Gaurav Yadav said the arrest came in a joint operation of the state special operation cell, the Anti-gangster Task Force and Faridkot Police. The two were identified as Anmolpreet Singh alias Vishal, a resident of Bhadorh in Barnala and Navjot Singh alias Neetu, a resident of Nijjar Road in Kharar.
Arsh Dalla, who has been accused of involvement in targeted killings, terror financing and extortion in Punjab, was in January last year designated a terrorist by the Indian government. The Union Home Ministry had said in a notification that he was involved in the cross-border smuggling of drugs and weapons on a large scale.
He is an accused in various cases registered and investigated by the National Investigation Agency, including targeted killing, extorting money for terror funding, attempt to murder, disturbing communal harmony and creating terror among the people in Punjab. The central government believes that Gill is involved in terrorism and hence designated as a terrorist under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, 1967 by exercising the powers conferred by clause (a) of sub-section (1) of section 35 of the Act, the notification had said.
In September 2024, Dalla publicly claimed responsibility for the murder of Congress leader Baljinder Singh Balli. Balli was shot dead in Moga district of Punjab. Dalla was the acting chief of the Khalistani Tiger Force and was seen as the successor of slain terrorist Hardeep Singh Nijjar.
Dalla, a wanted person on the National Investigation Agency’s (NIA) terrorist list, has been allegedly orchestrating criminal activities in Punjab from his base in Canada for the past three to four years. A native of Moga, Dalla is accused of multiple targeted killings in Punjab.
Born in Ludhiana, Dalla was designated as a terrorist by the Government of India in 2023. According to a gazette notification by the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA), Dala is associated with banned terrorist outfit Khalistan Tiger Force.
Dalla is accused of being involved in heinous crimes like murder, extortion and targeted killings. He is also accused of terror financing, cross-border smuggling of drugs and weapons at a large scale. According to the MHA notification, Arsh Dalla is accused in various cases registered and investigated by the National Investigation Agency including targeted killing, extorting money for terror funding, attempt to murder, disturbing communal harmony and creating terror among the people in the state of Punjab. Dalla became active in 2020.
He was mostly engaged in terror funding, raising terror modules, coordinating the supply of weapons from the other side of the border, and planning specific murders across Punjab. According to the dossier created by the intelligence agencies, Dalla has a more killing record than the assassinated KTF leader Hardeep Singh Nijjar. Dalla allegedly planned an attack on a Hindu priest, Pragya Gyan Muni, in Phillaur, Jalandhar, in January 2021 through his associates Ram Singh, alias Sona, and Kamaljeet Sharma, alias Kamal.
Dalla was also involved in the murder of Manohar Lal, a disciple of Dera Sacha Sauda, in Bathinda in November 2020. Dala also claimed responsibility for the murder of Sukhpreet Singh, a deceased criminal. Dalla collaborated with gangster Bikram Brar and Canada-based Goldy Brar in 2021 to form a 4-member KTF module tasked with targeting specific individuals. The module was assigned to target Bittu Premi, Shamma Badmash and Sirsa-based DSS follower Shakti Singh.
