Chandigarh: A pro-Khalistan terror module, backed by Pakistan’s ISI, carried out a late Monday night blast at a freight corridor railway track near the Shambhu area in Patiala, killing the suspect who was attempting to detonate the explosives, the police said here, adding that four members of the group have been arrested.
The explosion, which occurred on the Shambhu-Ambala rail track, was initially described as a low-intensity blast. However, an investigation later determined it was an attempt to blow up the track, the police stated.
It was the second such attempt in the past three months, targeting the freight rail corridor track.
Earlier in January, a blast on a dedicated freight corridor railway track in the Fatehgarh Sahib district’s Sirhind had damaged the engine of a train and left a loco pilot injured.
The explosion occurred near Bothonia village on the rail track, causing damage and leaving a small crater beneath the railway line, the police said on Tuesday.
Four persons, who have been arrested, are identified as Pardeep Singh Khalsa, Kulwinder Singh, both residents of Mansa, Satnam Singh and Gurpreet Singh, both residents of Tarn Taran.
Satnam is the younger brother of Jagrup Singh.
The person who was trying to carry out the detonation died when he was planting the explosive device, and due to mishandling, the blast took place, the police said, suspecting that RDX was used as the explosive material.
The police have identified the deceased suspect as Jagrup Singh, a resident of Panjwar village in Tarn Taran district, with DIG Chahal saying he was part of the terror module, which was being run from Malaysia.
However, the kind of explosive and its quantity would be known after the report of a forensic team.
Deputy inspector general of police (DIG) Kuldeep Chahal said the blast took place before a coal-laden train on the stretch passed along the stretch.
The loco pilot of the train felt some jerk, and then he raised an alarm, alerting the authorities, said the DIG.
The impact of the blast was so strong that Jagrup’s body was blown into pieces, and his parts were found strewn around 200 feet from the explosion spot.
Jagrup was wearing the dress of a ‘Nihang’ (Sikhs dressed in loose blue top), said the DIG.
Chahal said the police suspect that one more person might have accompanied Jagrup, the hunt for whom is underway.
