Sukhbir Badal attacked: Who is Narain Chaura, the ex-Khalistani militant who fired shots at former Punjab Dy CM?

Former Punjab Deputy Chief Minister, Sukhbir Badal was shot at by a man while he was performing the duty of ‘sevadar’ outside the Golden Temple on Wednesday. Sukhbir Badal, who was sitting in a wheelchair, however, escaped unhurt as the firing attempt was foiled and the bullet hit a wall.

The man who tried to fire bullets at former deputy chief minister of Punjab has been identified as Narain Singh Chaura was nabbed later. Chaura has been noticed roaming around the area since Tuesday.

Badal was serving a religious punishment given to him by Akal Takht, the highest temporal body of Sikhs in a sacrilege case. The Sikh clergy at theAkal Takht pronounced the punishment in the wake of “mistakes” committed by the SAD and its government in Punjab from 2007 to 2017.

Who is Narain Singh Chaura?

Chaura is a former militant who also faced many cases and remained underground. He was reportedly an actively involved with the Khalistani movement, which sought to establish an independent Sikh state, Khalistan, in the 1980s.

The movement gained momentum after the 1984 Operation Blue Star and the assassination of Prime Minister Indira Gandhi, leading to widespread violence and instability in Punjab.

He was active as a Panthic leader for some years, belongs to Dera Baba Nanak area.

Chaura was arrested way back in 2013 under the section of UAPA. He came out of jail after five years in August 2018. Chaura was accused of smuggling explosives across the border during the 1984 riots. Chaura is also said to play a key role in Burail jailbreak.

Chaura had helped the Babbar Khalsa International terrorists, Jagtar Singh Hawara, and Paramjit Singh Bheora, along with their two accomplices Jagtar Singh Tara and Devi Singh, to escape from the Burail jail. He turned off the electricity supply of the jail for a long time.