Two suspected terrorists arrested from the India-Pakistan border in Amritsar district had planned terror activities to avenge several incidents of sacrilege of Guru Granth Sahib in the state in 2015, police sources said on Monday.
Mann Singh, 40, of Sri Hargobindpur (Gurdaspur) and Sher Singh, 28, of Kartarpur (Jalandhar) were remanded in five-day police custody on Monday by a court in Ajnala town near Amritsar.
Both were arrested on Sunday by the Punjab Police in coordination with the Border Security Force.
An AK-47 assault rifle, five hand grenades, six pistols, a .32 bore revolver, two rifles, including a modified one, along with ammunition of different calibre were seized from the two while they were trying to retrieve the weapons pushed into the Indian territory from Pakistan side.
The two suspected terrorists were interrogated by officials of various security agencies at the joint interrogation centre near Amritsar.
"We wanted to take revenge for the sacrilege incidents. We were told that we will get the weapons to carry out terror strikes," Mann Singh told the media on Monday while he was escorted out of the court by the police.
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Police officials claimed on Sunday that the "terror module was raised and indoctrinated by Canada-based Sikh hardliner Gurjivan Singh, who had visited Punjab twice in six months and arranged for arms and ammunitions through his Khalistani contacts in Pakistan".
The arrested duo claimed Gurjivan Singh was in touch with them for two years and motivated them for terror strikes in Punjab. He also imparted them training in handling arms, including AK-47s, they said.
Mann Singh confessed to making several visits to Pakistan and being in touch with some Khalistani activists there.
Two persons were killed in police firing in Behbal Kalan village in Moga district in October 2015 and scores were injured in violence across Punjab as protests erupted over the sacrilege of the Sikh holy book.
In October 2015, two brothers were arrested for the act of sacrilege of the holy book or 'bir' in Bargari village in Faridkot district.
A 'bir' was stolen earlier on June 1, 2015, from a gurdwara at Burj Jawahar Singh Wala village of Faridkot. Over 100 pages of the holy book were found scattered in a street near a gurdwara, which incensed the people.
--IANS
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