Patiala railway blast solved: ISI-backed Khalistani module busted, 4 held with grenade and pistols
Police has busted an ISI-backed pro-Khalistani terror module behind the Patiala blast. Kingpin Pardeep Singh Khalsa was sending radicalised youth to Malaysia for terror training. Four arrested; grenade, two pistols, IEDs seized.
North Desk Correspondent
Chandigarh, April 28
Within 12 hours of the Patiala blast on a freight railway track near Shambhu, the police on Tuesday claimed it has cracked the case , busting an ISI-backed pro-Khalistani terror module and arresting four members, including the alleged kingpin.
The arrests
The four men arrested are:
— Pardeep Singh Khalsa, Mansa (alleged kingpin) — Kulwinder Singh alias Bagga, village Bappiana, Mansa — Satnam Singh alias Satta, Panjwarh, Tarn Taran — Gurpreet Singh alias Gopi, Goindwal bypass, Tarn Taran
All four are described by police as habitual criminals with multiple heinous crime cases already registered against them.
What had happened
The blast was reported around 10 pm on Monday night in the area falling in the Patiala district of Punjab, prompting an immediate response from senior Punjab Police officers, including the Deputy Inspector General and Patiala Senior Superintendent of Police Varun Sharma, who reached the spot along with teams from the Government Railway Police (GRP) and the Railway Protection Force (RPF).
The track sustained damage and repair work has begun. Some trains have been temporarily diverted.
SSP Sharma had confirmed that a low-intensity blast had taken place.
What was recovered
Police seized one hand grenade, two .30 bore pistols with ammunition, technically sophisticated communication devices intended for use in further detonations, and laptops used to communicate with handlers.
Who is Pardeep Singh Khalsa
According to DIG Patiala Range Kuldeep Chahal and SSP Patiala Varun Sharma, who addressed a press briefing Tuesday, Pardeep Singh Khalsa was the operational head of the module. He maintained close contact with Malaysia-based pro-Khalistani terrorists and Pakistan-based arms suppliers.
They said, Khalsa had set up a radical outfit called “Chalda Vaheer Chakarwarti, Attariye” and was recruiting and radicalising youth, then sending them to Malaysia for terror training before assigning them targets inside India.
The Patiala blast: what is now confirmed
Initial investigation had treated the Bothonia village explosion as a suspected detonation attempt gone wrong, with the suspected bomber — Jagroop Singh of Tarn Taran, whose body was recovered at the scene — dying in the blast. Tuesday’s breakthrough confirms that the blast at the main freight line near Shambhu railway station was a deliberate, planned IED strike by this module.
Police said the arrested men were planning further attacks on public infrastructure and properties.
The FIR
An FIR has been registered at Police Station Kotwali, Patiala under: — Section 111, Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) — Sections 3, 4 and 5, Explosive Substances Act — Section 25, Arms Act — Sections 13, 16, 18 and 20, Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA)
The invocation of UAPA signals that investigators are treating this as a terrorism case, not a criminal conspiracy.
Second explosion
This is the second explosion on Punjab’s dedicated freight corridors in four months. A January 2026 blast at Sirhind in Fatehgarh Sahib district damaged a train engine and injured a loco pilot. Whether that incident is linked to this module is not yet confirmed.
Senior Congress leader and MLA Pargat Singh wrote on X–formerly Twitter–that the state had witnessed two serious incidents in a day. He mentioned a killing in Batala alongside the Patiala blast, calling it “ominous sign” of attempts to disturb the state’s peace.
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