NIA is preparing a list of tourists who are suspected to be working for Babbar Khalsa.
Anti-India terror outfit Babbar Khalsa International has given up the hawala route and switched to a new mode of terror funding for its operatives by sending money through foreign tourists on visit to India, say sources, adding that the NIA has contacted the RBI for checking the misuse of the online transfer facility.
The proscribed outfit is misusing the Reserve Bank of India’s Money Transfer Service Scheme (MTSS) through which personal remittances can be transferred from abroad to travelling beneficiaries in India.
The NIA is also preparing a list of tourists who are suspected to be working for the BKI and frequenting Punjab, Haryana and Rajasthan under the garb of social engagements.
The MTSS allows a visiting tourist to ask his or her family or friends based abroad to send Rs 2 lakh to his and her bank account, so that the money can be withdrawn and used in India for personal expenses during the trip.
The BKI is misusing the scheme in league with tour guides and is offering commissions to visiting tourists for getting remittances in their accounts from abroad. The tourists seek money through MTSS, retain the commission amount and withdraw the rest of the amount and deliver it to BKI’s local contacts, said an official.
“Under this scheme, crores of rupees have been sent to India for terror operatives to purchase arms and ammunition,” he said. Under the MTSS channel, a tourist can call for remittances at the most 30 times in a year. Each remittance cannot be more than $2,500 (nearly Rs 2 lakh).
In a recent crackdown, the NIA raided 16 locations against activities of the chiefs/members of BKI. The probe agency, which had registered the case suo moto on 10 July 2023, identified Harwinder Singh @ Rinda and Lakhbir Singh Sandhu @ Landa as among the key conspirators involved in hatching terror conspiracies as well as smuggling of arms and ammunition into Punjab.
They had also been sending funds to their associates through various MTSS channels for carrying out terrorist acts, NIA investigations showed.
In another case, seven locations were raided by NIA against the organized crime syndicate being run on the directions of Lawrence Bishnoi and his associates, including Goldy Brar, under UA(P)A. The syndicate has spread its mafia style criminal networks in several states of the country, as well as abroad, in active conspiracy with Harwinder Singh @ Rinda, a “designated Individual terrorist”.
These networks have been involved in many sensational crimes, such as the murders of popular Punjabi singer Sidhu Moosewala as well as religious and social leaders like Pardeep Kumar, besides large-scale extortions from businessmen and professionals. During the raids against BKI operatives, several illegal arms and ammunition were seized, along with incriminating documents, digital devices and cash. The seizures in the searches included 2 pistols, 2 magazines and ammunition, along with cash amounting to Rs 4.60 Lakhs, besides documents and digital devices, the NIA said.