Lawrence Bishnoi brought to Delhi in gangster-terror nexus case

New Delhi, Nov 24 (IANS) The National Investigation Agency (NIA) on Thursday brought gangster Lawrence Bishnoi to Delhi from Punjab after getting his ten days custodial remand in connection with the gangster-terror nexus case.

Bishnoi is currently lodged in a Punjab jail. Here he would be grilled at the NIA's headquarters.

"Investigations have revealed that Lawrence along with his brothers Sachin and Anmol Bishnoi and associates including Goldy Brar, Kala Jathedi, Kala Rana, Bikram Brar and Sampat Nehra were also raising funds to carry out all such terror/criminal activities through smuggling of drugs and weapons and widespread extortion," said a NIA official.

The investigations have revealed that a terrorist, gangster and drug smugglers syndicate led by Bishnoi was involved in many targeted killings and extortion from businessmen, professionals including doctors and this had created terror among the public at large.

Such criminal acts were not isolated local incidents but part of a deep-rooted conspiracy amongst terrorists, gangsters, drug smuggling cartels and networks, operating from both within and outside the country.

It was found that most of the conspiracies were hatched from inside the jail by Lawrence Bishnoi and were executed by an organized network of operatives based in India and abroad.

"Pertinently, the arrested gangster is involved and wanted in many cases, including the conspiracy to carry out targeted and sensational killings in Punjab, Haryana, Chandigarh, Himachal Pradesh, Rajasthan and Delhi since more than a decade," the NIA said.

The NIA has learnt that a number of Punjabi pop singers were on the radar of gangsters who wanted to execute their killings like that of Siddhu Moosewala.

The NIA has also claimed that the gangsters were getting arms and ammunition from Pakistan.

In the first week of November, the NIA had questioned two Punjabi singers Dalpreet Dhillo and Mankirat Aulak for hours at it's Delhi headquarters.

Mankirat has been living abroad and this is the first time he is in India.

Both the singers were interrogated about the Bambiha Gang and Lawrence Bishnoi. They were also asked about a few of their projects.

In October the NIA grilled Punjabi pop singer Afsana Khan, an associate of late Moosewala.

The Lawrence Bishnoi gang allegedly killed Moosewala to avenge the death of Vicky Middukhera. But before killing Moosewala, a number of persons from the Punjabi pop industry were threatened, while a few were also attacked.

Sources said they were also trying to probe the links between the gangsters and the Punjabi pop industry.

The Delhi Police Special Cell and the Punjab Police have arrested over a dozen gangsters in connection with the murder of Moosewala. During the probe the agencies came to know about the gangsters-terrorists nexus. The MHA took the matter seriously and had asked the NIA to investigate it thoroughly.

The sources have claimed that in the coming days a few more persons from the Punjabi pop industry could be summoned to join the investigation by the NIA.