Jalandhar BSF HQ blast case has taken a major turn. Punjab Police, in coordination with the Delhi Police Special Cell, have arrested two key suspects in connection with the May 5 IED explosion outside the Border Security Force Punjab Frontier Headquarters. With 17 arrests made thus far and signs of Pakistan-based terror links, investigators are now trying to piece together the full conspiracy behind the twin explosions that shook Punjab.
Who has been arrested so far?
Punjab Police has scored a breakthrough in the May 5 IED blast case, arresting a prime suspect in a joint operation with the Special Cell of the Delhi Police. The arrested individual is identified as Umar Deen, a taxi driver who had been living near Zirakpur for several months. Separately, security agencies also arrested Anil Sharma, a resident of Uttar Pradesh, while investigating whether a larger conspiracy was involved. So far, 17 people have been arrested in connection with the blasts.
What happened at the Jalandhar BSF HQ blast case?
The explosion took place on the evening of May 5, when a parked scooter went off just outside the main gate of the BSF Punjab Frontier Headquarters at BSF Chowk around 8:15 pm. A few hours later, a second low-intensity explosion occurred near the Khasa Army cantonment in Amritsar.
How was the Blast actually triggered?
The method used to trigger the explosion has raised serious alarm among investigators. The accused had reportedly inserted his own SIM card into the IED and then placed a call to that very number, which subsequently triggered the explosion. Deen is also suspected of having conducted a two-day reconnaissance of the target site before carrying out the attack.
Is Pakistan behind the Jalandhar blast?
Punjab DGP Gaurav Yadav, who reached the blast site soon after the incident, did not rule out the possibility of it being an IED blast masterminded by Pakistan’s intelligence agency, the ISI. Investigators say the mastermind of the blast is Pakistani terrorist Shahzad Bhatti and a search is on for the person who provided the explosives to the accused. The Khalistan Liberation Army had claimed responsibility for the attacks, though the Punjab DGP stated that such outfits are often proxy fronts allegedly created at the behest of Pakistan.
Where is Jalandhar BSF HQ blast investigation headed now?
CCTV footage reviewed by the Delhi Police suggests the suspect boarded a bus from the Jalandhar bus stand shortly after the explosion. While the probe is on to unravel the entire chain of command behind the twin blasts, security agencies are keeping a close watch across Punjab, the police has not officially confirmed all the details and investigations are still on.