Punjab Grenade Attack: 2 Suspects Arrested; Police Find Lawrence Bishnoi Gang, ISI Link

Jalandhar: Two suspects were arrested in connection with the grenade attack that took place at Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader and former union minister Manoranjan Kalia's house in Punjab's Jalandhar on Tuesday, April 8. The accused, Zeeshan Akhtar and Shehzad Bhatti, also allegedly have links with the Lawrence Bishnoi gang and terror outfit Babbar Khalsa International (BKI), reported The Times of India.

The attack was carried out by Pakistan's intelligence agency Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) with the aim of spoiling religious harmony in the state, reported news agency ANI citing sources.

CCTV Footage of The Grenade Attack:

CCTV footage has emerged of the grenade attack at the residence of senior BJP leader Manoranjan Kalia in Jalandhar. The assailants arrived in an E-rickshaw, initially passing by the house. Moments later, they returned and hurled the explosive device before fleeing the scene. https://t.co/QrFcwzp7cm pic.twitter.com/FDZzVLROKZ

— Gagandeep Singh (@Gagan4344) April 8, 2025

Notably, Akhtar is also reportedly wanted in the murder of the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) leader Baba Siddique. The police recovered the vehicle used to carry out the blast at around 1 am on Tuesday, reported TOI. The police have reportedly launched a manhunt operation to nab two other suspects in the case.

Special DGP's Statement:

Addressing a press conference, Special DGP Arpit Shukla said police teams are conducting raids at different locations in connection with the attack.

"Two people have been arrested in this case and the auto-rickshaw which was used in this crime has also been confiscated. It was a major incident to disturb communal harmony. As per the initial investigation, this was a major conspiracy of Pakistan's ISI. Zeeshan Akhtar, who is a close associate of gangster Lawrence Bishnoi, was the mastermind of the case," Shukla said.

"Our teams are conducting raids at different locations so that the investigation in this case is finished as soon as possible. We are also in touch with the central agencies and a big operation has been launched," he added.

#WATCH | Chandigarh: Blast reported outside BJP leader Manoranjan Kalia's residence in Jalandhar | Special DGP Arpit Shukla says, "Two people have been arrested in this case and the auto-rickshaw which was used in this crime has also been confiscated. It was a major incident to… pic.twitter.com/TXZyBKmvHu

— ANI (@ANI) April 8, 2025

BJP Target's AAP Government:

Kalia said that he was sleeping when the blast occurred outside his residence.

"There was a blast at around 1 am... I was sleeping, and I thought that it was the sound of thunder...Later, I was informed that a blast had taken place...after this, I sent my gunman to the police station...CCTV is being investigated; forensic experts are also present here," Kalia said as quoted by ANI.

BJP slammed the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) government in the state. BJP leader and Union Minister Ravneet Bittu said that the AAP government had lost control of the law and order situation in the state.

"An e-rikshaw passes by his residence at around 1:15 am, and a grenade is thrown inside. His vehicles and the exteriors of his residence have borne the impact of the blast. The government has lost control of the law and order situation in the state... There is an atmosphere of fear in Punjab. Drugs are being openly used, and even police personnel are being caught with drugs," Bittu told the news agency.

BJP MP Sudhanshu Trivedi raised concerns regarding the law and order situation in the state and said that the Punjab government has become 'AAP-DA'.

Recently, a grenade was also hurled at a temple in Amritsar.

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