New Delhi: The National Investigation Agency (NIA) on Thursday filed a chargesheet against Inderpal Singh Gaba, a major suspect in the 2023 attack on the Indian high commission in London. Gaba, who resides in Hounslow, UK, was apprehended by the NIA in New Delhi on April 25 of this year in connection with attacks on the high commission on March 19 and 22 of last year by pro-Khalistani extremists.
According to the NIA’s chargesheet, Gaba was among the agitators who took an active role in the anti-India protest held on March 22, 2023, outside the Indian high commission. On that day, over 2,000 pro-Khalistani supporters vandalized the commission buildings, throwing items including ink to deface them. Earlier, on March 19, a mob had pulled down the Indian flag, causing injuries to some embassy staff members.
Avtar Singh Khanda suspected mastermind
The attack is believed to have been orchestrated by UK-based Khalistan Liberation Force (KLF) leader Avtar Singh Khanda, who passed away in a UK hospital in June last year. Gaba was detained by immigration authorities in December 2023 at the Attari border when he arrived from London via Pakistan, following a lookout notice issued against him.
Gaba’s involvement exposed
According to the NIA, the investigation against Gaba began with instructions for him not to leave the country while the probe was ongoing. The NIA reported that it had confiscated his mobile phone and analysed the data, which include “several incriminating videos/photos of the incident, and eventually established his involvement in the incident.”
According to the NIA, the attacks on the Indian high commission in the UK were carried out in response to the Punjab Police’s crackdown on radical Sikh preacher and Waris Punjab De chief, Amritpal Singh. He was arrested nearly a month later by the Punjab Police.
Amritpal Singh, who is currently held in Assam’s Dibrugarh jail, won the Lok Sabha election from Punjab’s Khadoor Sahib seat by a margin of nearly two lakh votes. “The violent attack on the High Commission was aimed at furthering and achieving the cause of Khalistan by secession of the state of Punjab from India,” the agency added.