Khalistani Terrorist Gurpatwant Singh Pannu Issues New Threat to Air India Flights

Khalistani terrorist Gurpatwant Singh Pannu issued yet another threat on Monday, this time targeting an Air India flight. Pannu warned that an Air India flight could be attacked between November 1 and 19, claiming the attack would coincide with the 40th anniversary of the so-called “Sikh genocide.” Pannu, the founder of the banned terrorist organization Sikhs for Justice (SFJ), holds dual citizenship in the United States and Canada. He has made several threats in the past to bomb Air India planes.

Pannu’s Role in Straining India-Canada Relations

This latest threat from Pannu comes at a time when several airlines in India have received bomb threats, all of which have turned out to be hoaxes. It also comes amidst a diplomatic row between India and Canada, where Canada has accused India of targeting Khalistani terrorists, including the assassination of Hardeep Singh Nijjar.

In November 2023, Pannu released a video claiming that Delhi’s Indira Gandhi International Airport would be renamed and shut down on November 19, warning people not to fly with Air India on that date. The National Investigation Agency (NIA) has charged Pannu with criminal conspiracy, promoting enmity between groups based on religion, and various crimes under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA).

Last December, after an alleged plot to assassinate him failed, Pannu threatened to attack the Indian Parliament on or before December 13. The date marks the anniversary of the 2001 terrorist attack on the Parliament. He also threatened to kill Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann and Director General of Police Gaurav Yadav on Republic Day, urging gangsters to unite and attack Mann on January 26.

Since July 2020, Pannu has been declared a terrorist by the Ministry of Home Affairs due to his involvement in treason and separatist activities. He leads Sikhs for Justice (SFJ), a group advocating for a separate sovereign Sikh state. A year earlier, India had banned SFJ as an “unlawful association” for its “anti-national and subversive” activities.

In the past five days, over 100 airlines have received threats. The Ministry of Home Affairs has directed the CISF to increase security at airports following these bomb threats. On Saturday, the Bureau of Civil Aviation Security (BCAS) held a meeting with airline CEOs to discuss measures for handling such threats. BCAS officials instructed CEOs to adhere to standard operating procedures (SOPs) in response to bomb threats.

Sources told IANS that officials stressed the importance of informing all stakeholders about the threats and the measures being implemented. Investigations revealed that some IP addresses linked to these threats originated from London, Germany, Canada, and the U.S. However, authorities have not ruled out the possibility that the perpetrators used VPNs (Virtual Private Networks) to conceal their actual locations.