After Bhullar, former militant Khera reaches Amritsar
AMRITSAR: For mer militant Gurdeep Singh Khera, 55, who had been lodged in Karnataka’s Gulbarga jail for the past more than two decades, reached here in the wee hours of Friday and was taken to the central jail. He is the second terror convict to be shifted this month to Punjab from another state, after 1993 Delhi bomb blast convict Devinder Pal Singh Bhullar.
Khera reached the railway station here on the Sachkhand Express at 2am under heavy security of the Amritsar and Karnataka police.
Activists of Sikh organisations wanted to present a ‘siropa’ (robe of honour) to him, but the Amritsar police refused permission. Following Khera outside the railway station, radical Sikhs raised slogans in favour of militant leader Jarnail Singh Bhindranwale.
Khera was behind bars in Karnataka since 1990 after being convicted under TADA (Terrorist and Disruptive Activities Prevention Act) for cases registered in Delhi and Karnataka.
The ex-miltant was taken to the central jail in the vehicle of the civil lines station house officer (SHO), inspector Sukhwinder Singh Randhawa.
Welcoming Khera’s arrival, Mohkam Singh of the United Akali Dal said, “It is good that he is back in Punjab, but we are unhappy with the attitude of the police and the local administra-
SHIFTED TO CENTRAL JAIL FROM KARNATAKA PRISON, WHERE HE HAD BEEN LODGED SINCE 1990; RADICALS RAISE PRO-BHINDRANWALE SLOGANS ON HIS ARRIVAL
tion. We wanted to give him a ‘siropa’, but were not allowed to do so. People like Khera have already spent a lot of time in jails and we want that the government must do a rethink on humanitarian grounds and release him.”
After Khera was taken to the central jail, his parents and other family members reached there to meet him. However, the jail officials asked them to leave, saying that such meetings were allowed only on Tuesday and Saturday, as per jail norms.
Dal Khalsa spokesperson Kanwarpal Bittu said, “We are satisfied that Khera has reached Punjab after 25 years. We will accompany his family to the jail on Saturday for a meeting.”
Central jail superintendent RK Sharma said, “Khera is being treated like other convicts. He will also be assigned work according to jail norms.”