Two persons have been arrested after a hand grenade was thrown at a police station in Fazilka district of the Indian state of Punjab, damaging two vehicles parked inside the premises.  Indian media reported that the attack took place at around 2 a.m. on the intervening night of September 12 and 13 at the main gate of Jalalabad Police Station. The intensity of the explosion damaged two vehicles, while police immediately cordoned off the area.

Police later confirmed that it was a grenade attack following forensic examination and further investigation.  Police said two arrested men were identified as Gurpreet Singh, a resident of Hazara Ram Singh Wala, and Manpreet Singh, a resident of Ghubaya village in the Jalalabad subdivision. However, authorities did not disclose the motive behind the attack or the suspects’ possible organizational affiliations. 

While no significant damage was reported beyond the two vehicles, the incident, coming months ahead of state elections, has raised questions about the law and order situation in Punjab.  Shiromani Akali Dal chief Sukhbir Singh Badal called it "total collapse of law and order in Punjab".  "Punjab is in chaos. If police stations are unsafe, how can Punjabis be safe? It is the rule of gangsters, not a rule of law," added senior Akali leader Bikram Singh Majithia. 

The Modi government has routinely blamed such incidents on pro-Khalistan Sikh organizations, prompting several Sikh leaders to live in self-imposed exile. However, Sikh leaders have also faced attacks and threats abroad. Former Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau had cited evidence of the involvement of Indian intelligence agency RAW in the killing of Sikh leader Hardeep Singh Nijjar in Canada in June, 2023. 

Credit: Independent News Pakistan (INP)