Chandigarh: On December 23, 2024, Punjab Police DGP Gaurav Yadav announced a breakthrough against an alleged module of the Khalistan Zindabad Force (KZF), stating that three members of the group were killed in an “encounter” in the jurisdiction of Puranpur Police Station, in the Pilibhit district of Uttar Pradesh. He described it as a joint operation between the Punjab Police and Uttar Pradesh Police. The Punjab police chief also claimed to have recovered two AK-47 rifles and two Glock pistols.

In a post on X (formerly Twitter), Punjab DGP identified the deceased as Varinder Singh alias Ravi (23), Gurwinder Singh (25), and Jashanpreet Singh alias Partap Singh (18). The police also asserted that the trio were responsible for the grenade attack on the Bakhshiwala Police Post in Kalanaur, Gurdaspur, on December 19.

However, the families of Varinder Singh Ravi and Gurwinder Singh have expressed shock and disbelief at the news of their sons deaths in the encounter. Gurwinder Singhs father, who lives in a rented house in Kalanaur and works as a daily wage laborer, said his son had gone out with friends, and they were stunned to learn on December 23 that Gurwinder had been killed in Uttar Pradesh. The police had informed them of his death. We dont know how he ended up in UP, Gurvinder Singh’s father, Gurdev Singh, was quoted by BBC Punjabi as saying. His mother insisted on seeing her son’s body.

Jashanpreet Singhs family resides in the village of Nikka Shahur, about 10 kilometers from Kalanaur in Gurdaspur. They maintain that their son was uneducated and worked as a daily laborer. Jashanpreet Singh had told them he planned to learn truck driving to improve his earnings. According to the family, he left home to pursue this goal and traveled with Varinder Singh Ravi. In a BBC Punjabi report, Jashanpreet Singhs mother denied her sons involvement in the activities for which he was accused.

Media reports have noted that at the residence of Varinder Singh Ravi in Agwan village, the gate was locked, and no one was at home.

Questions Raised About the Encounter

The encounter has sparked questions, particularly on social media, where many users are raising doubts about its authenticity. A photo collage, showing the profile pictures of the three men alongside their dead bodies, has been widely shared. Netizens, especially from the Sikh community, have pointed out that the clothes worn by the men in their profile pictures and at the time of their deaths appear to be identical, raising suspicions that the photos may have been taken before the encounter.

Ajaypal Singh Brar of Misl Satluj shared a news clip about the families of Gurvinder Singh, Jashanpreet Singh, and Varinder Singh Ravi, stating, [F]or the past six decades, a campaign of fear, intimidation, and targeting of our youth has been ongoing. This incident (the Pilibhit encounter of December 23, 2024) is part of that ongoing process. Poor youth from marginalized families are being killed in so-called encounters. If we do not speak out against such excesses, this will lead to countless unclaimed bodies (a reference to the atrocities and human rights violations committed by Indian state forces in Punjab during the 1980s and ’90s.)

Ajaypal Singh Brar has called for a high-level inquiry led by a former high court judge to investigate the incident.

Punjab DGP Claims Serving UK Army Officer is KZF Handler; British Army Denies

On December 23, 2024, Punjab DGP Gaurav Yadav claimed in a video that a serving British Army officer named Jagjeet Singh alias Fateh Singh Bagi was handling modules for the Khalistan Zindabad Force (KZF).

DGP wrote on X (formerly Twitter): “This module is controlled by Ranjeet Singh Nita, the chief of KZF, and operated by Jaswinder Singh Mannu, based in Greece, a resident of village Agwan. It is further controlled by Jagjeet Singh, based in the UK and serving in the British Army. Jagjeet Singh used the identity of Fateh Singh Baggi.”

However, Indian online media outlet The Print reported that the British Army has refuted the Punjab DGP’s claims.

“The British Army Tuesday told ThePrint that there is no one with either the name of Jagjeet Singh or his pseudonym who is currently serving in their force. A British Army spokesperson, however, said that a photo published by media outlets is indeed of a British Sikh soldier, but his name is not Jagjeet Singh,” The Print reported on December 24, 2024.