Malaysia Police Constantly On The Lookout For Militant Activities (No Indications In Malaysia So Far)

Police Constantly On The Lookout For Militant Activities


This is the official police response to reports on a blog that Sikh militants were establishing a base in Malaysia.



KUALA LUMPUR, July 29 (Bernama) -- Police are constantly on the look out for any type of militant activities whether locally or abroad, including militant movements by Sikhs, the Royal Malaysian Police (PDRM) said in a statement here.

The statement said PDRM would not allow any party to make Malaysia a base for militant operations.

"So far there are no indications of the existence of a Sikh militant movement in the country as has been claimed by a blog," it said.

The statement was issued in response to a blog posting which said police in the Indian state of Punjab had claimed that Malaysia was being used as a base of operations by Sikh militants.

The statement added that PDRM would cooperate with any party including Indian authorities if needed on such a matter as the Malaysian police would never compromise on any sort of militant activity whatsoever.

-- BERNAMA

This is the news article that the police in Kuala Lampur are referring to.

Sikh Militants Set Up Base In Malaysia - Punjab Police


By P. Vijian

NEW DELHI, July 28 (Bernama) -- The ruthless Khalistan Liberation Force (KLF), a Sikh separatist group, is suspected to have set up base outside Kuala Lumpur, with at least four of its militants in hiding in Malaysia.

The KLF has set up a base in Malaysia to enable the four militants to canvass for support, claim the Punjab police.

The police said they obtained the "vital clue" on the KLF base in Malaysia following the arrest of a suspected miltant at a guest-house in Patiala district (Punjab) last Monday.

They said the 22-year-old man was linked to a series of bombings in the state, early this year, adding that he was suspected of planting bombs outside a LPG bottling plant in Nabha and the Halwara Air Force station in Punjab.

Intelligence reports reveal he fled to Malaysia, where he sought shelter from another wanted KLF militant who had been residing in Seremban for some time.

"The suspect was staying in Seremban for about a year. We are very much sure the KLF has set up a base in Malaysia because these boys (militants) are going there to get support.

"The suspect had travelled to Thailand by road and later flew to Pakistan to get arms training. Definitely, they are using Malaysia to carry out their activities," Patiala senior superintendent of police Ranbir Singh Khatra told Bernama when contacted by telephone today.

Last Monday's arrest, coupled with the discovery of 15kg RDX from another Sikh militant, of the Khalistan Zindabad Force on July 23, has left the police in a tizzy.

Intelligence agencies now suspect Sikh terrorists based outside Punjab were preparing to create mayhem in Delhi before the Commonwealth Games later this October.

A recent Punjab police intelligence advisory further justified their anxiety: "Certain militants sitting abroad are desperate to push four Sikh extremists into India to carry out nefarious activities."

The KLF movement was started by Sikh hardliners who staged an armed struggle against the Indian Government in the 1980s-1990s, seeking a separate Sikh homeland - to be called 'Khalistan'.

Although the group was crushed by Punjab police and later disintegrated, remnants of KLF members now operate from outside India, supported by foreign elements, to strike terror on Indian soil.

"We suspect, at least four more militants are still hiding in Malaysia. We will get the help of the Indian federal government, Interpol and the Indian Embassy in Kuala Lumpur to arrest them," said Khatra.

At the peak of its reign, the violent separatist movement hijacked the Srinagar-Delhi bound Indian Airlines flight to Lahore, Pakistan, with 255 passengers on board in 1984.

-- BERNAMA


http://www.bernama.com/bernama/v5/newsindex.php?id=517034