NIA chargesheets three accused in Punjab grenade attack case with links to Khalistani terrorists
New Delhi (PTI): The National Investigation Agency (NIA) has charge sheeted three accused in the 2024 case relating to a grenade attack at a police post in Punjab's SBS Nagar district that has been traced to a major conspiracy by the banned Khalistan Zindabad Force (KZF) terror outfit, officials said on Sunday.
Yugpreet Singh alias Yuvi Nihung, Jaskaran Singh alias Shah and Harjot Singh alias Jot Hundal, all hailing from Rahon village in SBS Nagar, have been charged under various sections of the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, Explosive Substances Act and other related provisions in the charge sheet filed on Saturday before a court in Mohali, Punjab, they said.
The NIA has also launched investigations against KZF chief and designated individual terrorist Ranjit Singh alias Neeta, the outfit's member operative Jagjit Singh Lahiri alias Jagga alias Jagga Miapur alias Hari Singh (currently in the UK), and other unidentified terror operatives, the officials said.
The agency, which took over the case from Punjab Police in March this year, has found that Jagga had recruited Yugpreet Singh through an acquaintance in the UK, according to an official statement.
Along with other KZF terrorists and operatives, Jagga had radicalised Yugpreet and "handled him via encrypted messaging applications", it said.
Jagga had also provided Yugpreet over Rs 4.36 lakh of terror funds through a complex chain of Canada-based entities, who have also been identified and examined, said the statement issued by the NIA.
"Yugpreet had, in turn, recruited the other two chargesheeted accused and the trio had carried out the attack at Police Post Asron during the night between 1st and 2nd December 2024," it said.
The three accused had been provided the grenade by their foreign-based handlers earlier in November 2024, the probe agency said.
The NIA is continuing with its investigation in the case, as part of its efforts to destroy KFZ's attempts to carry out terror attacks at law enforcement establishments and sensitive installations, as well as targeted killings in the state of Punjab, the statement said.
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Karnataka Cabinet ratifies decisions on internal reservation for SCs
Bengaluru (PTI): The Karnataka Cabinet has ratified its earlier decisions on internal reservation for Scheduled Castes and approved key modifications to streamline recruitment, including withdrawal and reissue of notifications and adoption of a 400-point roster system.
Briefing reporters after the meeting, Karnataka Law and Parliamentary Affairs Minister H K Patil on Thursday said the Cabinet reaffirmed its commitment to implementing internal reservation within the 15 per cent SC quota and expediting long-pending recruitment across departments.
"The Cabinet ratified decisions taken in earlier meetings (April 16 and April 24) and made modifications regarding reservation policies," Patil said.
He said the government will implement internal reservation within the 15 per cent quota for Scheduled Castes in specified proportions and revise recruitment notifications accordingly, with a 400-point roster to be followed.
If fewer than three roster points for SC arise in recruitment, then all 101 Scheduled Caste communities will be allowed to compete under SC general, he said.
Patil added that recruitment notifications issued without incorporating internal reservation will be withdrawn and reissued in line with the revised policy.
"If the Supreme Court approves 24 per cent reservation for SC/ST, six per cent backlog posts will be filled," he said, noting that urgent steps will be taken to fill 56,432 approved posts.
The latest decision follows the Cabinet's April 24 resolution that cleared a revised internal reservation formula within the overall 15 per cent SC quota, paving the way for long-pending government recruitment. The government had approved 5.25 per cent reservation each for the "right-hand" and "left-hand" groups, and about 4.5 per cent for other Scheduled Castes, including nomadic communities.
Chief Minister Siddaramaiah had then said the categorisation was worked out proportionately within the constitutional ceiling. "From tomorrow onwards, the recruitment process will begin with the issuance of notifications," he had said after the April 24 Cabinet meeting.
He also noted that the SC quota was fixed at 15 per cent and ST at three per cent in line with the 50 per cent cap laid down in the Indra Sawhney case, while pointing out that the Supreme Court had permitted internal reservation within constitutional limits.
