Govt bans Khalistan Liberation Force
New Delhi, Dec 27 : The government has banned Khalistan Liberation Force (KLF) for its involvement in several killings, bombings and other terror activities during its violent campaign for "secession of Punjab".
The decision to ban the outfit under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA) comes in the backdrop of agencies unearthing several KLF modules in recent months which has led to apprehensions that it is attempting to revive militancy in the state.
The Khalistan Liberation Force and all its manifestations have been declared outlawed under the under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA), a Home Ministry order said on Wednesday, adding it will be the 40th organisation to be proscribed under this law.
According to officials, during the height of militancy in Punjab in 1980s and 1990s, the group was involved in a series of unlawful activities.
The ban on KLF has been imposed as it is involved in "killing of innocent people and police officers, several bombings on civilian targets in India, collection of funds for terror activities through extortion, kidnappings, bank robberies and assassination attempts of important government functionaries", the order said
The KLF came into existence in 1986 with the objective of establishing an independent Khalistan by secession of Punjab from India "through violent means", the order said
"The KLF has committed acts of terrorism and promoting acts of terrorism and has been engaged in radicalisation and recruitment of youth for terrorist activities in India," the order said.
The Home Ministry maintained that a five-member KLF module was busted by the Punjab Police, which resulted in working out the two cases relating to planting of Improvised Explosive Devices (IEDs) in Nabha, Punjab. Another KLF module was busted in Gurudaspur district and four terrorists were arrested with illegal arms and ammunition. They were planning to target Pathankot based leaders of a particular political party.
Another KLF module was busted by Amritsar police and three KLF terrorists were arrested, who were planning to target prominent members of a particular community, so as to disrupt communal harmony in Punjab.
The home ministry said the Jalandhar police also busted a KLF and Khalistan Zindabad Force module of four members and arrested the chief of KLF along with illegal arms and ammunition on November 7, 2014.
Yet another KLF module was busted in 2017, which carried out a series of eight killings or attempted killings of specific communities and organisations in order to destabilise the law and order situation and reviving terrorism in Punjab.
The ministry also said the members of KLF in India are getting financial and logistic support from their handlers based abroad and it believes that the KLF is involved in terrorism as it has committed and participated in various acts of terrorism in India.
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Kerala court sentences man to life imprisonment for doc's murder in hospital
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Kollam (PTI): A teacher convicted in the sensational murder of Dr Vandana Das inside a hospital here was sentenced to life term on Saturday, and the prosecution said it will move an appeal seeking death penalty for the accused. The victim's family also batted for "maximum punishment".
Dr Das was brutally killed inside a taluk hospital in May 2023 by G Sandeep.
Kollam Additional District and Sessions judge P N Vinod sentenced Sandeep to a total of 30 years for various offences under the then Indian Penal Code (IPC) and said that after he serves that period, his life imprisonment for Das' murder will commence.
The court also imposed a fine of Rs 2.35 lakh on the convict.
Though the prosecution had sought death penalty for the accused during the arguments on sentence, the court was of the view that the case does not fall under the rarest-of-rare category to warrant the maximum punishment.
It was also of the view that there was a chance of the convict getting reformed as he told the court that the rest of his life would be one of repentance, the order on sentence said.
"At the same time, I agree with the stand of the prosecution to the effect that the sentence should commensurate with the gravity of the crime and the sentence should not only be reformative, but should also have a deterrent effect."
"In my view, the said objective can be achieved by directing that the term sentences that will be imposed will run consecutively and life sentence that has to be imposed will commence only after the expiration of terms sentences," the judge said.
After the verdict, special public prosecutor (SPP) Prathap G Padickal told reporters outside the court that he will recommend to the prosecution to file an appeal seeking enhancement of the life imprisonment to death penalty.
The victim's father said that the verdict has come as a relief for the family, but that he cannot authoritatively say whether his late daughter has got justice. He indicated his dissatisfaction with the punishment, saying that steps will be taken to seek its enhancement after discussions with the public prosecutor.
Dr Das' mother said that the family can only wish for the maximum punishment and it was up to the court to decide what sentence should be given. She said that the family will go in appeal, but declined to comment on whether her daughter got justice.
She tearfully said that she wants the convict to suffer the same pain that her daughter underwent "as he stabbed her 27 times".
The court on March 17 had convicted Sandeep for various offences under the IPC, including murder, destruction of evidence and wrongful restraint.
It had also held him guilty under the provisions of the Kerala Healthcare Service Persons and Healthcare Service Institutions (Prevention of violence and damage to property) Act 2012.
Sandeep was brought to the taluk hospital by the police for medical treatment during the small hours of May 10, 2023 and he went on a sudden attacking spree using a pair of surgical scissors kept in the room where his leg injury was being dressed.
A school teacher by profession, he had initially attacked the police officers and another person who had accompanied him to the hospital and then turned on the young Dr Das, who could not escape to safety.
She was stabbed several times and later succumbed to her injuries in a private hospital in Thiruvananthapuram where she was rushed following the attack.
Dr Das was a native of the Kaduthuruthy area of Kottayam district and the only child of her parents.
She was a house surgeon at Azeezia Medical College Hospital and was working at the Kottarakkara taluk hospital as part of her training.
Sandeep had called the emergency number 112, claiming that his life was in danger. When local police located him, he was standing close by his home, surrounded by local residents and his relatives, and had a wound on his leg following an alleged quarrel.
He was then taken to the hospital for dressing the wound.
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