Anmol Bishnoi remanded in NIA custody for 11 days after extradition from US

Gangster Anmol Bishnoi the brother of jailed gangster Lawrence has been remanded in the National Investigation Agencyrsquos NIA custody for 11 days by a special court at Patiala House following his arrest after extradition from the United States US news agency ANI reported He was subsequently taken to the NIA headquarters for further interrogationSpecial Public Prosecutor for NIA Rahul Tyagi confirmed that the court granted an 11day remand and directed that Bishnoi be produced again on November 29ldquoElevenday remand has been granted He will be produced again on November 29th NIA said that he is a very important member of the BKI Babbar Khalsa International gangster syndicate He will also be probed for Khalistani connectionrdquo Tyagi saidHe further claimed that Lawrencersquos gang had links to the Khalistan movementldquoIn the FIR the Lawrence Bishnoi gang colluded with the Babbar Khalsa International gang and started working for them Babbar Khalsa was attempting to revive the Khalistan Movement and they Bishnoi gang were helping them in the same Several such angles are being investigatedhelliprdquo added TyagiCalling Anmol ldquoan important member of this terrorgangster syndicaterdquo Tyagi said NIA believes the accused was coordinating the grouprsquos activities from abroadldquoWe have already filed a chargesheet under sections 17 18 18A 120B and other sections of UAPA and for extortionrdquo stated TyagiDefence says Bishnoi ready to cooperateAdvocate Rajni Bishnoirsquos counsel told the court that her client was willing to cooperateldquoWe have always supported the investigationhellip we are ready to join We will extend all possible supportrdquo she statedRejecting allegations of terror links she added ldquoAs far as terrorist activities are concerned we have no links to them How will you get evidence for something which does not existhellip We demanded certain safeguards from the Court The Court directed NIA to follow those guidelines NIA also accepted that they will follow all the guidelineshelliprdquoSecurity stepped up NIA moved Anmol discreetlyThe security around the Patiala House Court complex was intensified before Bishnoi was brought there According to sources NIA discreetly moved him out of Delhi Airport due to security concernsNIA formally arrested Bishnoi earlier on Wednesday after he was deported from the US The agency said he had been absconding since 2022 and is the 19th accused held in the terrorgangster network allegedly operated by LawrenceBishnoi is also the main accused in the October 2024 Baba Siddique murder case as well as in the firing incident outside actor Salman Khanrsquos Bandra residence earlier this year His name had earlier surfaced in the murder of Punjabi singer Sidhu MoosewalaNIA alleges involvement in terror syndicateThe agency said Bishnoi was chargesheeted in March 2023 after investigations ldquoestablished that he had actively aided designated individual terrorist Goldy Brar and Lawrence Bishnoi in the commission of various acts of terrorism in the country during the 2020ndash2023 periodrdquoAccording to NIA Bishnoi operated from the US coordinating terror and organised crime activities and also provided shelter and logistics to the gangrsquos shooters and ground operatives He allegedly ran extortion networks from abroadThe investigation is part of RC 392022NIADLI which targets the nexus between terrorists gangsters and arms smugglers reported ANIFamily demands safetyBishnoirsquos cousin Ramesh urged the Centre to ensure his safetyldquoThe law will take its coursehellip but our main concern is that if he is being brought to India the Indian government should ensure his safety This will be our demandrdquo he saidOn Tuesday Siddiquersquos son Zeeshan said he received an email stating that the Centre had removed Bishnoi from the US He stated that the family continues to await justice and wants the full conspiracy behind his fatherrsquos killing to be uncoveredEarlier this year the NIA had announced a reward of Rs 10 lakh for information leading to Bishnoirsquos arrest He is chargesheeted in two NIA cases registered in 2022With ANI inputs