A Delhi court on Friday sent Vikas Singh, a key associate of jailed gangster Lawrence Bishnoi, to judicial custody for 30 days in a case related to the rocket-propelled grenade (RPG) attack on Punjab Police’s intelligence headquarters at Mohali in May 2022.
The National Investigation Agency (NIA) produced the accused before vacation judge Chhavi Kapoor of the Patiala House Courts after questioning him for two days.
Singh, a resident of Lucknow, was arrested on Tuesday for his alleged involvement in harbouring Deepak Surakhpur and Divyanshu, both residents of Uttar Pradesh’s Faizabad, of the Lawrence Bishnoi terror syndicate.
The accused duo were involved in various criminal cases, including the RPG attack.
The Investigating Officer (IO), during the hearing, submitted that Singh has been questioned and the investigation is underway.
The accused may be remanded to judicial custody, the IO said.
On June 21, when vacation judge Pawan Kumar had sent him to five-day NIA custody, the Special Public Prosecutor for the agency had submitted that Singh’s custodial interrogation is required to unearth the criminal conspiracy and his links with the co-accused.
Considering the facts and submissions, the court had observed that custodial interrogation of the accused is required.
“Accordingly, the application is allowed and the accused be sent to five-day NIA custody,” the court had ordered.
The present case relates to the terrorist-gangster conspiracy hatched by members of the Bishnoi syndicates based in India and abroad to raise funds and recruit youth to carry out terrorist acts in Delhi and other parts of the country.
The investigations so far have shown that the conspiracy was hatched in jails of different states and was being executed by an organised network of operatives based abroad.
The NIA investigation has revealed that Surakhpur was introduced to Singh by Vicky Midhukhera, another associate and friend of Bishnoi. Singh had connected Divyanshu, who was already known to him, to the Bishnoi syndicate.
The duo was also involved in numerous targeted contract killings, including those of businessman Sanjay Biyani in Maharashtra and gangster Rana Kandhowalia in Punjab. Singh also harboured another accused named Rinku after Kandowalia’s murder.
The NIA has arrested 15 accused so far and has charged 14 accused, including Lawrence Bishnoi, in the terror-gangster conspiracy case.
The NIA had filed the charge sheet in the case immediately on March 24 under various sections of the Indian Penal Code, Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, and the Arms Act.
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