Who is Narain Singh Chaura, the former Khalistani militant arrested for opening fire at Sukhbir Singh Badal at Golden Temple?

Punjab has been left shocked after one of the most influential politicians in the state narrowly escaped an attempt on his life outside the holiest site for Sikhism, the Golden Temple in Amritsar. The shocking assassination attempt has also raised fears of an underground Khalistani resurgence in Punjab.

Who is Narain Singh Chaura

This is because the accused, who was promptly overpowered by guards and later arrested, is known to have had links with Khalistani militant groups in the past.

The accused has been identified as Narain Singh Chaura, a former militant who had ties with Babbar Khalsa International, the Khalistani terrorist group behind the Air India Kanishka bombing in 1985.

Narain Singh Chaura's long history of criminal activities?

Chaura has a long history of criminal activity and has been in and out of jail for some time. He was born in a village called Chaura near Dera Baba Nanak, in Punjab's Gurdaspur district, in 1956 and has been associated with the Khalistani separatist movement since the 1980s. He is also said to have been in touch with Pakistan-based groups to smuggle arms into Punjab.

In February 2013, Chaura was arrested in Tarn Taran for his alleged role in arms smuggling and was behind bars for five years.?

2004 Burail Jailbreak

However, his most infamous act is the 2004 Burail Jailbreak, when four high-value undertrials—Jagtar Singh Hawara (chief of Babbar Khalsa International), Jagtar Singh Tara (chief of BK India), Paramjit Singh Bheora (convicted for life for assassinating Beant Singh, former Chief Minister of Punjab), and Devi Singh (undertrial in a murder case)—fled from a high-security jail.

They escaped by digging a 94-foot-long and 2.4-foot-wide tunnel from cell No. 7 of the Munda Khana barrack at the Burail jail in Chandigarh. Chaura was accused of facilitating their escape by turning off the electricity supply to the jail.

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