Sikh militant Jagtar Singh Hawara was using women and religious places to dodge security agencies and regroup his terror network in Punjab after his sensational jailbreak last year, say police.
Half a dozen women have already been nabbed by Punjab and Delhi Police following the chance arrest of Hawara - chief of the terror outfit Babbar Khalsa International - last week.
Hardeep Kaur, who was mainly responsible for harbouring Hawara in the one and a half years since he tunnelled his way out of Burail prison here, was arrested by Punjab Police on Friday from outside a Sikh religious shrine in Fatehgarh Sahib district.
The Punjab government this week constituted a six-member special investigation team (SIT) of top police officers to smash Hawara's terrorist network. The team had been given 10 days to finish their job.
The arrest of Hardeep is being seen as a major catch by senior Punjab Police officials here.
Hardeep was a long-time friend and associate of Hawara during his school and college days. Hawara was living with Hardeep for nearly one year in a rented accommodation in Samrala town even though she was married to an army man and had two children.
Two sisters of Hardeep have also been arrested by Punjab Police while two more sisters are said to have helped him as he tried to rebuild his terrorist network since mid-2004.
Another woman came to be associated with Hawara recently. He married Balwinder Kaur of Dohal village in Sangrur district May 13, just 20 days before being arrested near Patiala.
Police officials are probing the role of Hawara's new in-laws, who fellow villagers vouch are innocent since they had no idea about his past as they were told that he was a non-resident Indian.
Hawara's new wife came from a poor family of marginal farmers. Yet another woman is being linked to him. When he escaped from jail last year, Hawara's run from security agencies was facilitated by Baljit Kaur.
Besides women, another thing that has come to the knowledge of investigating officers here is that Hawara and his associates were openly using Sikh religious places (gurudwaras and other deras) to remain in hiding and continue their activities.
Not only was Hardeep arrested from a Sikh temple in Fatehgarh Sahib district but Hawara too has apparently told interrogators in Delhi that he too had taken shelter in Sikh religious places in the past year.
A religious volunteer, Sukhdeep Singh alias Deepa, who had attended Hawara's recent wedding and who the police believe was one of the 10 people whom Hawara had selected to be a human bomb to kill VIPs, committed suicide on Friday by jumping into the well of a Sikh religious shrine in Punjab's Hoshiarpur district.
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Half a dozen women have already been nabbed by Punjab and Delhi Police following the chance arrest of Hawara - chief of the terror outfit Babbar Khalsa International - last week.
Hardeep Kaur, who was mainly responsible for harbouring Hawara in the one and a half years since he tunnelled his way out of Burail prison here, was arrested by Punjab Police on Friday from outside a Sikh religious shrine in Fatehgarh Sahib district.
The Punjab government this week constituted a six-member special investigation team (SIT) of top police officers to smash Hawara's terrorist network. The team had been given 10 days to finish their job.
The arrest of Hardeep is being seen as a major catch by senior Punjab Police officials here.
Hardeep was a long-time friend and associate of Hawara during his school and college days. Hawara was living with Hardeep for nearly one year in a rented accommodation in Samrala town even though she was married to an army man and had two children.
Two sisters of Hardeep have also been arrested by Punjab Police while two more sisters are said to have helped him as he tried to rebuild his terrorist network since mid-2004.
Another woman came to be associated with Hawara recently. He married Balwinder Kaur of Dohal village in Sangrur district May 13, just 20 days before being arrested near Patiala.
Police officials are probing the role of Hawara's new in-laws, who fellow villagers vouch are innocent since they had no idea about his past as they were told that he was a non-resident Indian.
Hawara's new wife came from a poor family of marginal farmers. Yet another woman is being linked to him. When he escaped from jail last year, Hawara's run from security agencies was facilitated by Baljit Kaur.
Besides women, another thing that has come to the knowledge of investigating officers here is that Hawara and his associates were openly using Sikh religious places (gurudwaras and other deras) to remain in hiding and continue their activities.
Not only was Hardeep arrested from a Sikh temple in Fatehgarh Sahib district but Hawara too has apparently told interrogators in Delhi that he too had taken shelter in Sikh religious places in the past year.
A religious volunteer, Sukhdeep Singh alias Deepa, who had attended Hawara's recent wedding and who the police believe was one of the 10 people whom Hawara had selected to be a human bomb to kill VIPs, committed suicide on Friday by jumping into the well of a Sikh religious shrine in Punjab's Hoshiarpur district.
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