CHANDIGARH: Punjab Police have foiled a terror plot backed by Pakistan’s Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) with the recovery of an RDX-based improvised explosive device (IED) and the arrest of one individual in Amritsar, DGP Gaurav Yadav said on Tuesday.
The accused has been identified as Rahul Kumar, also known as Gaju, a resident of Chamrang Road in Amritsar, who worked as an assistant in a salon.
Yadav said preliminary investigations indicated that the accused was in contact with a foreign-based handler operating under instructions from Pakistan.
The probe also revealed that Rahul collected the IED from a designated location on the outskirts of Amritsar, following directions from his foreign-based handler, the DGP added. The device had been concealed in a PVC pipe casing, likely to evade detection.
A probe is underway to determine the intended target of the IED, the officer said.
Sharing operational details, Assistant Inspector General Sukhminder Singh Mann said that, following credible intelligence about an IED being sent from Pakistan, police launched an operation and arrested Rahul after recovering the device from his possession.
Mann added that the accused had come into contact with his foreign-based handler during the latter’s visit to Punjab in 2022. They maintained communication through encrypted mobile applications.
The handler initially provided Rahul with small amounts of money to meet his expenses before assigning him this task, Mann said.
A case has been registered at the State Special Operations Cell in Amritsar under relevant provisions of the Explosive Substances Act, the Arms Act, and the Indian Penal Code.