NIA court clears decks for Arsh Dala’s extradition from Canada

A special NIA court has allowed the application of the National Investigation Agency (NIA) to extradite Khalistan Tiger Force (KTF) terrorist Arshdeep Singh, alias Arsh Dala, from Canada.

On July 21, 2023, a request for Dala’s provisional arrest was forwarded to Canada through diplomatic channels. In response to the request, a communication, dated August 15, 2023, was received from Canadian authorities, seeking an extradition request in respect of Dala.

The designated terrorist is required to be extradited to India to face trial for planning and conspiring to kidnap and kill Shakti Singh, a follower of Dera Sacha Sauda, in 2021, through his India-based associates to avenge sacrilege of Guru Granth Sahib.

He allegedly provided logistics and weapons to his associates, along with fake identity cards of Punjab Police personnel. Using these fake identities, his associates, on his directions, posed as Punjab Police personnel to abduct Singh.

NIA alleged that Dala formed a terrorist gang, and recruited Lovepreet Singh, alias Ravi, Ram Singh, alias Sona, and Kamaljeet Sharma, alias Kamal, for conspiring to kidnap, extort money and kill people of other faiths to create a sense of fear and disharmony in the state of Punjab.

Dala allegedly made threat calls through secure modes of communication to prominent people/business entities in Punjab and further threatened them to pay extortion money.

All these threat calls were being initiated to raise terror funds for carrying out terrorist activities in the state of Punjab, NIA told the court.

Initially, Punjab Police had booked Dala on May 22, 2021, under the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act; Arms Act; and Sections 386, 387, 397 and 400 of the Indian Penal Code at the Mehna police station in Moga, Punjab.

After the Union ministry of home affairs directed NIA to register a case and take up the investigation, NIA re-registered the instant case on June 10, 2021 and, also booked Dala under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act.

Thereon, a red notice, dated May 31, 2022, was published by the Interpol Secretariat General at Lyon, France, for Dala’s apprehension.

Allowing NIA’s plea, the court of Manjot Kaur, special judge, NIA, Punjab, observed, “Submissions of the learned public prosecutor for the NIA by the way of present application stands allowed. A communication...has also been received from the Canadian authorities with the request to send extradition request in respect of fugitive Arshdeep Singh, alias Arsh Dala, alias Prabh. In the said circumstances, on the request of the NIA, extradition request in respect of the accused, in the desired format, has been countersigned with the official seal of the undersigned.”