Ahead of G20 meet, pro-Khalistan outfit makes threat calls

A banned pro-Khalistan organisation has made threat calls to hundreds of people including journalists ahead of a crucial three-day G-20 meeting to be held in Uttarakhand's Ramnagar with an aim to "internationalise" the issue, officials said.

They said those who received the calls Sunday night heard pre-recorded messages by Gurpatwant Singh Pannu, head of the organization 'Sikh for Justice', in which he said they will raise flags at airports, railway stations and other areas during the meeting days.

"Ramnagar is not a part of India and it will be made a part of Khalistan after Punjab is freed," Pannu said in the message, according to Uttarakhand Special Task Force's Deputy Inspector General (DIG) Senthil Abudai Krishnaraj S.

The Chief Scientific Advisors' Roundtable (CSAR) of G-20 countries will be held in Uttarakhand's Ramnagar from March 28-30 with its focus on harnessing the benefits of traditional knowledge in healthcare.

Krishnaraj S said all the numbers from which such recorded calls were received are being traced.
The DIG said the Special Task Force is probing the matter. It seems that Pannu is trying to gain "publicity" on the Khalistan issue through the G-20 meeting.

However, the Uttarakhand police is fully prepared and "we will not allow the purpose of these separatists to be fulfilled", he said.

"There is a full security arrangement for the G-20 meeting. Our senior officers are keeping a watch there," he said.

Meanwhile, the police in Udhamsinghnagar district which has a sizeable Sikh population are on alert over the absconding Khalistan separatist preacher Amritpal Singh and his associates.
Following intelligence received from the Punjab Police and central agencies, the district police has tightened security especially in areas bordering Uttar Pradesh districts of Rampur, Pilibhit and Bareilly, and Nepal.

All government and private vehicles are being checked and religious places are also being monitored, officials said.

City Superintendent of Police Manoj Kumar Katyal said religious places near the international border are also being searched, and a special vigil is being kept on the people passing through the India-Nepal border. The police have also pasted posters of Amritpal and his associates at various places, and running a "verification campaign", he said.

The Punjab Police has alerted their Uttarakhand counterpart suspecting that absconding Amritpal Singh might have taken a shelter in Uttarakhand and might flee to Nepal.

The Sashastra Seema Bal (SSB) and the state police in Pithoragarh are also keeping a close watch in areas near the India-Nepal border, officials said.