Kamal Ghorui
NEW DELHI: Baltej Singh, nephew of Satwant Singh, one of the two bodyguards who had assassinated the then PM Indira Gandhi in Oct 1984, was running an international Meth cartel spanning Canada, India and New Zealand in cahoots with pro-Khalistan elements in these countries. The drug money was funding the so-called Khalistan movement, and Baltej was one of the masterminds and main fundraisers for the anti-India and pro-Khalistan rallies in Auckland, sources said.A probe into his pro-Khalistan drug trafficking ring is likely to begin in Canada.Arrested in Auckland in March 2023 in a case that saw massive seizure of Meth, Singh’s identity has now been officially revealed by a New Zealand court, and the case files have opened a can of worms, quite literally.The probe had kicked off in the aftermath of the reported death of a man after consuming liquor. The investigators stumbled upon a 473-ml blue-coloured beer can with the picture of a red bear and a maple leaf. An analysis of the contents of the can revealed that it was Meth.Singh (40) was arrested and produced in court, where the police said that a part of the shipment being imported by Singh contained liquid meth while the rest contained beer. After his arrest, his family tried hard to suppress his name and Khalistani links, citing that they would face threats, but the name suppression was recently lifted by the Court of Appeal in public interest.Singh was sentenced to 22 years’ imprisonment, with a minimum period of imprisonment of 10 years, for multiple drug offences. His associate, Himatjit Singh Kahlon, was sentenced to 21 years in prison.
