Amritsar, Dec 5 : Pakistan-based self-styled chief of the banned outfits Khalistan Liberation Force (KLF) and International Sikh Youth Federation Lakhbir Singh Rode, 72, has reportedly died in Pakistan due to a cardiac arrest.
A nephew of slain Damdami Taksal head Jarnail Singh Bhindranwale, Lakhbir Singh was listed as an ‘individual terrorist' under the UA(P)A. He was accused in the 1985 bombing of the Air India jet Kanishka.
A native of village Rode in Moga, Lakhbir Singh had initially fled to Dubai, but later moved to Pakistan. However, his family had stayed in Canada.
In 2002, India had submitted a list of 20 terrorists demanding their extradition from Pakistan.
The National Investigation Agency (NIA) has also declared him as the mastermind behind the 2021 Ludhiana Court complex blast. He was charged with smuggling Improvised Explosive Devices (IEDs) into India from Pakistan for triggering explosions across Punjab.
Lakhbir Singh's brother and former Akal Takht Jathedar Jasbir Singh Rode confirmed to The Tribune about the development.
“We have been informed only by his (Lakhbir Singh Rode) son, who lives in Canada, that his father died of a heart attack in Pakistan on December 2. He must have been cremated over there. We have no confirmation about it.
He said his brother was not keeping well for the past fortnight.
“He was diabetic and had undergone bypass surgery recently,” Jasbir Singh Rode said.
