Gajinder Singh Khalsa was one of the five men accused of hijacking an Indian Airlines plane in Lahore in 1981. The flight was forced to land in Lahore by Khalsa and four others, to seek the release of several Khalistani extremists, including Jarnail Singh Bhindranwale. Pakistan used its elite commando force to get all passengers released.

Radical leader Gajinder Singh, who hijacked Indian Airlines plane in 1981, dies in Pakistan

New Delhi: Radical outfit Dal Khalsa founder and wanted terrorist Gajinder Singh Khalsa died in Pakistan after suffering heart attack. The radical outfit has yet not confirmed his death. The 74-year-old was admitted at a hospital in Lahore. He reportedly passed away on July 3 after a brief illness. India had put his name in the list of 20 most wanted terrorists in 2002.

Who was Gajinder Singh Khalsa?

Gajinder Singh Khalsa was one of the five men accused of hijacking an Indian Airlines plane in Lahore in 1981. The flight which took off from Delhi’s Palam airport for Srinagar on September 29, 1981 with more than 100 people on board, was forced to land in Lahore by Khalsa and four others, to seek the release of several Khalistani extremists, including Jarnail Singh Bhindranwale. Pakistan used its elite commando force to get all passengers released.

Gajinder Singh and others were awarded 14-year jail term in Pakistan and were released after the completion of their sentence in 1995. In July 1996, Singh went to Germany to start his life afresh but was deported to Pakistan. Dal Khalsa activists had also moved the administrative court of Germany against his deportation. Since the, he had been in exile in Pakistan.

Wanted in India

Following the hijacking incident, the Indian government had banned the Dal Khalsa in 1982. The ban was, however, lifted a decade later. India had also put his name in the list of 20 most wanted terrorists in 2002.

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