Labh Singh

Sukhdev Singh Dhillon (1952 – 12 July 1988), best known as Labh Singh and also known as Sukha Sipahi and General Labh Singh, was a former Punjab police officer turned militant[1] who took command of the Khalistan Commando Force after its first leader, Manbir Singh Chaheru, was arrested in 1986.[2] [3]

For the athlete, see Labh Singh (athlete).

General
Labh Singh
2nd Jathedar of Khalistan Commando Force
In office
August 1986 - July 1988
Preceded byManbir Singh Chaheru
Succeeded byKanwaljit Singh Sultanwind
Personal details
Born1952
Village Panjwar, Amritsar, India
Died12 July 1988
Tanda, Hoshiarpur, Punjab, India
Signature
NicknameSukha Sipahi
Military service
RankGeneral
Battles/wars[Insurgency in Punjab

He was an associate of Jarnail Singh Bhindranwale and fought against the Indian Army during Operation Blue Star.[4] He was involved in the attack on the Director-General of the Punjab Police, Julio Francis Ribeiro. He allegedly masterminded[5] what was then India's largest bank robbery,[6] taking almost Rs. 60 million ( About 984.5 million rupees in 2023. About $12 million USD in 2023) from the Punjab National Bank, Miller Gunj branch, Ludhiana.[6][7][8] which enabled the Khalistan Commando Force to buy weapons.[9]

Early life

Labh Singh's original name was Sukhdev Singh Dhillon He was also known as Sukha Sipahi.[10] He lived in the village of Panjwar, in Tehsil (sub-district) Patti in district Amritsar[11][12][13] and owned 9 acres (36,000 m2) of land.[11][14] He married Davinder Kaur.[15]

Punjab Police service

After finishing his education at Baba Buddha Sahib College,[16] Labh Singh joined the Punjab Police force[17] in 1971[18] and served the force until he left his job.[18]

Association with Jarnail Singh Bhindranwale

Influenced by Jarnail Singh Bhindranwale, Labh Singh left the Punjab police in early 1980s,[18] and joined the Sikh freedom movement.[17]

In May 1984, Labh Singh, Gursewak Singh Babla,[19] Gurinder Singh and Swaranjit Singh were accused of killing Hind Samachar newspaper group editor Ramesh Chander,[20] who was an outspoken critic of Jarnail Singh Bhindranwale[21] and had written that Punjab had "become a slaughterhouse." In a call to an Amritsar news agency, responsibility for the attack in Jullundur by four armed men was claimed by Sikh militant group Deshmesh Regiment.[22]

During Operation Blue Star, he fought against the Indian Army with other Sikh militants.[4] He was arrested by the army after the operation.[23]

Khalistan Commando Force

Jailbreak

6 people were killed, and more injured, in a violent attack on the District court in Jalandhar, Punjab, India.[24][25][26][27][28][29] Accounts of the attack, reported on 6 April 1986 in the US, differed.[20] According to an unidentified source in Mahmood's "Fighting for Faith and Nation: Dialogues with Sikh Militants", the attack was made by Sikh militant leader Manbir Singh Chaheru and his associates.[30]

"The Courier" of Arizona, US, carried a story attributed to UPI stating that 3 "Sikh terrorists" killed 3 police officers who were taking 3 prisoners to a bathroom, while "16 armed court guards cowered in fear". The report stated that 2 police holding a 4th prisoner were also gunned down, and that "Three other officers, a lawyer, and a bystander were wounded as the Sikhs sprayed the area for 15 minutes." Police said that the guards were too frightened to return fire. This fourth suspect remained in custody. Finally, the Courier article reported that the Sikhs looted "three rifles and a submachine gun" from the dead bodies, and that a 6th officer later succumbed to wounds from the attack.[31]

The "Wilmington Morning Star" carried an AP story, and related that 3 "Sikh extremists" killed 4 police officers inside the District Court complex, killed two officers who "were shot at the courtyard gate as the attackers fled", and wounded 4 other individuals, including a lawyer. The Star identified the freed suspects as Labh Singh, Gurinder Singh, and Swaranjit Singh, who were to appear in court on charges of slaying Ramesh Chander, a Hindu newspaper editor. The Star reported that District Magistrate S.C. Aggarwal said 4 attackers fired over a compound wall from a lane. It further reported that others witnessed the attackers open fire from close range as police led the prisoners to the toilet. The report concluded with District Police Chief Baljit Singh Sandhu's statement that the attackers hard "fired at least 50 rounds" in the attack.[20]

The "Eugene Register-Guardian" reported that District Magistrate S.C. Aggarwal said in a telephone interview that 3 or more attackers opened fire as 4 defendants accused of the May 1984 slaying of Ramesh Chander, were being led into the compound, and that the attackers took 3 rifles from the slain police. [29]

This single incident became a basis of Roberio's "Bullet for bullet" policy.[32]

KCF leadership

After KCF's first leader, Manbir Singh Chaheru was arrested and disappeared or died, Labh Singh took over the leadership of Khalistan Commando Force.[1][3]

One unnamed author speculated in "Genesis of terrorism: an analytical study of Punjab terrorists" that Labh Singh "perhaps" maintained his links with Babbar Khalsa International.[10]

Attack on Director General of Punjab Police

Although account details differ, on 3 October 1986, men identified in the press as Sikh militants in police uniforms attacked Director-General Punjab Police Julio Francis Ribeiro inside his headquarters in the city of Jalandhar, Punjab, India, with automatic weapons.[33] One guard was killed, and Ribeiro, his wife, and four other officers were injured. Ribeiro's wound was minor, but his wife was hospitalized.[34][35][36][37] Khalistan Commando Force later claimed responsibility for this attack.[38] KCF leader Labh Singh allegedly led the attack.[39][40]

Attacks on Police

In a phone call to news organisations Labh Singh claimed responsibility for the killing of 4 members of a police patrol near Amritsar.[41]

Early robberies

In September of 1986 KCF members under Labh SIngh robbed a bank in Talwara. the bank manager was killed and 29,000 rupees (386,000 rupees in 2023. 4,700 USD in 2023) was stolen.[42]

On September 29 of 1986 KCF members under Labh Singh robbed a bank in Tar Taran Sahib. The bank manager was killed.[43]

In October of 1986 Labh Singh personally led a bank robbery in Talwara at the State Bank of India. According to police 4 Sikhs robbed the bank and 2 people were killed and another 2 wounded. The robbery occurred in broad daylight. $176,000 USD was stolen. ($488,000 USD in 2023)[44][45]

In October of 1986 Labh Singh and his fellow militants robbed 1,023,000 rupees (2023 20,392,784 rupees or 2023 US $250,000) from a bank in Ludhiana.[46]

In October of 1986 Labh Singh and his fellow militants robbed 800,000 rupees (10,650,000 rupees in 2023. 130,000 USD in 2023) from the Millar Ganj branch of the Punjab National Bank, Ludhiana.[47]

Major Robbery

In February 1987 Labh Singh allegedly masterminded[5] what was at that time the largest bank robbery in Indian history, netting almost 60 million (58 million rupees About 984.5 million rupees in 2023- US $4.5 million About US $12 million in 2023) from the Millar Ganj branch of the Punjab National Bank, Ludhiana;[5] a part of this stolen money belonged to the Reserve Bank of India, India's central bank.[6][7] It was documented as the "Biggest Bank Robbery" under "Curiosities and wonders" in the Limca Book of Records.[48] The loot enabled the Khalistan Commando Force to buy sophisticated weapons[49] and AK-47 rifles.[9] Sikh militants often used bank robberies to finance their campaign against the Indian government.[6]

The Chicago Sun-Times reported that "12 to 15 Sikhs dressed as policemen and armed with submachine guns and rifles escaped with nearly $4.5 million in the biggest bank robbery in Indian history." "No one was injured." A Police spokesman described it as "a neat and clean operation".[7]

Khalistan Commando Force members who allegedly participated in the robbery included Harjinder Singh Jinda, Mathra Singh,[50] Paramjit Singh Panjwar,[51] Satnam Singh Bawa,[52] Gurnam Singh Bundala,[53] Sukhdev Singh Sukha, Daljit Singh Bittu,[54][55][56] Gursharan Singh Gamma[54][55] and Pritpal Singh.[57]

Later robberies

On May 5, of 1987 KCF members under Labh Singh robbed 850,000 rupees (10,400,000 rupees in 2023. 126,500 USD in 2023) from the Bank of India branch in Guru Amar Das market.[58]

Assassination of General Vaidya

In 1984, General Arun Vaidya had planned and supervised[59] Operation Blue Star – a controversial military operation ordered by Indira Gandhi, then Prime Minister of India,[60] in order to flush out a group of heavily armed Sikh militants in June 1984 at the Golden Temple, the holiest shrine of the Sikhs.

General Vaidya had moved to Pune after his retirement from the army. On 10 August 1986, General Arun Vaidya was shot and killed by Jinda and Sukha while he was driving his car home from the market.[61] According to the police, the assailants pulled up next to his car on motor scooters and fired eight or nine shots into the car.[62] Vaidya reportedly died instantly of head and neck wounds. His wife, who was also in the car, was wounded by four bullets in her back and thighs.[63]According to Indian intelligence sources, Vaidya had been the number four assassination target on lists by Sikh militants and he was one of several people killed in retaliation for Operation Blue Star.[64][65] Following the assassination, the Khalistan Commando Force issued a statement declaring that Vaidya had been killed in retaliation for the Operation Blue Star.[64]

Assassination of Inspector General Trilok Chand Katoch

On January 11 of 1987 Harjinder Singh Jinda and another militant of the Khalistan Commando Force assassinated Inspector General of Punjab Prisons Trilok Chand Katoch.[66] Katoch was killed in 3 shoots near his home in Chandigarh. Jinda and another fled on a scooter. Katoch was the highest ranking police official to be killed up to that point.[67] A letter stamped by Labh Singh was left on the dead body claiming responsibility and justifying the killing.[66]

Killing of Communists

Communists were targeted by many Sikh militant organizations and leaders. They were especially targeted by Labh Singh. Sant Jarnail Singh Bhindranwale called them the "arch enemies of the panth,"[68]

In September of 1986 KCF, whose leader was Labh Singh, killed Darshan Singh Canadian an MLA and party leader of the Communist Party of India.[69] Darshan Singh opposed Sikh militants and Khalistan supporting NRI Sikhs. He actively campaigned against both.[70]

In September of 1986 KCF members under Labh Singh also killed Baldev Singh Mann. He was a left-wing activist of the Communist Party of India (Marxist–Leninist) New Democracy. He was a state level leader of Kirti Kisan Union and the editor of Hirawal Dasta[71][72] Baldev was gunned down by 4 men in his home village near Amritsar. He was walking with his brother who escaped unhurt.[73][74]

On May 19 1987 KCF under Labh Singh killed Deepak Dhawan who was the State Committee member of the Communist Party of India (Marxist). Dhawan was riding his scooter near Sanghe. KCF members approached him and told him to try and run. He tried to run, but they shot him as he tried. [75][76][77][78][79]

On July 22 1987 KCF members under Labh Singh entered the farmhouse of Swaran Singh a official and vice president of the Amritsar district of the Communist Party of India. They went to where he slept with his family and opened fire. Swaran Singh, his wife. his mother, and his daughter were all killed in the fire. Swaran Singh's two other daughters were wounded, but his 5 year old son was unhurt. They also opened fire at the porch killing a worker, and injuring two others. A note was left claiming responsibility and saying it was over Swaran Singh's protests against the Sikh militants and Khalistan.[80][81]

On March 17 1988 Jaimal Singh Padha was assassinated by KCF members under Labh Singh. He was a leader of the Kirti Kisan Union, a Communist Party of India (Marxist-Leninist) Liberation front. Jaimal had written against religious communalism which angered Sikh militants. In one of his essays, he also spoke against Khalistan.[82]

Death

In June 1988, the Panthic committee appointed Labh Singh a high priest,[23] but on 12 July 1988 he was killed[83][84] in an encounter with police near Tanda, Hoshiarpur, Punjab, India.[23][85][86][87]

At that time, he was wanted in relation to the murder of a dozen policemen, newspaper editor Ramesh Chander, and an attempt on the former Punjab Police Chief Julio Francis Ribeiro.[23] Amritsar Police Superintendent Suresh Arora said "We have broken the back of the KCF. Sukhdev Singh was the most dreaded of the terrorists."[23]

The Tribune of India carried a report of a neighbor's statement that, after his death, many of his family emigrated to Canada, though his father-in-law stayed on in Labh Singh's house. The neighbor further stated that the father-in-law committed suicide after police beat him "mercilessly", and that the house then remained deserted for several years, but that finally it has been taken over by his relatives.[17]

Upon news of Labh Singh's death Gurbachan Singh Manochahal and Wassam Singh Zaffarwal issued statements saying," In the struggle begun by Sant Jarnail Singh Bhindranwale to liberate the Sikh nation, General Bhai Labh Singh sacrificed his life. The bhog cermony and Akhand Path will take place in his native village Panjwar, near Jhabal, on the 221st. We appeal to all sangats to attend the bhog ceremony in large numbers."[88]

Avtar Singh Brahma and Sukhdev Singh Babbar issued statements saying, "'One who dies in the battlefield is great. One who runs away takes birth again and again.' General Bhai Labh Singh acted on the words 'In the end one has to sacrifice one's life in the battlefield when all other means have failed.' The bhog cermony and Akhand path will take place in his native village of Panjwar 21 July 1988. We appeal to the Sarbat Khalsa to attened the last Ardas of this brave soldier."[88]

Kanwaljit Singh Sultanwind succeeded Labh Singh as leader of the KCF.[13]

The Tribune India reported in July 2006 that a Bhog (Sikh religious ceremony) for Labh Singh was held "in the past few months".[89]

See also

Footnotes
  1. Mahmood 1997, p. 155
  2. "India's most-wanted terrorist captured". New Straits Times Foreign News Service. 11 August 1986. Retrieved 23 January 2016.
  3. Atkins, Stephen E. (2004). Encyclopedia of modern worldwide extremists and extremist groups (illustrated ed.). Greenwood Publishing Group. p. 242. ISBN 9780313324857. Retrieved 26 June 2009.
  4. Mahmood 1997, p. 79
  5. Singh, Gurpreet 1996, p. 98 – "Labh Singh masterminded a bank robbery of R. 6 crore from a branch..."
  6. "Sikh Separatists Masquerade as Police to Stage India's Biggest Bank Robbery". Los Angeles Times. 13 February 1987. Retrieved 23 January 2016. Sikh(bracketed) separatists dressed as police officers looted a bank Thursday and escaped with $4.5 million, the biggest bank heist in Indian history, officials said. Bank robberies have been a major means of financing the Sikh militants' violent campaign for a separate state they call Khalistan. Bank robberies occur almost every week in Punjab.
  7. "Sikhs rob India bank of $4.5 million". Chicago Sun-Times. 13 February 1987. Archived from the original on 21 October 2012. Retrieved 21 March 2018.
  8. "SGPC honours kin of Vaidya's assassins". Tribuneindia.com. 9 October 2008. Retrieved 23 January 2016.
  9. Dhillon, Kirpal (2006). Identity and Survival: Sikh Militancy in India 1978–1993. Pa. Penguin India. ISBN 978-0-14-310036-2. Retrieved 23 January 2016.
  10. Genesis of terrorism: an analytical study of Punjab terrorists. Patriot. 1988. ISBN 9788170500674. Retrieved 23 January 2016. ...(KCF) which is headed by General Labh Singh alias Sukhdev Singh alias Sukha Sipahi. Perhaps he continued to maintain his links with the Babbar Khalsa also.
  11. Taylor & Francis (1991). The Journal of Commonwealth & comparative politics, Volume 29. Frank Cass. Retrieved 23 January 2016.
  12. Puri, Harish K.; Judge, Paramjit S. (3 September 2008). Social and political movements by Harish K. Puri, Paramjit S. Judge, Page 391. ISBN 978-81-7033-633-4. Retrieved 23 January 2016.
  13. Walia, Varinder; Puri, Gurbax (9 March 2001). "Normalcy a bliss for Panjwar family". Tribuneindia.com. Retrieved 23 January 2016.
  14. Singh, Gurpreet 1996, p. 97 – A founder of the KCF, his real name was Sukhdev Singh alias Sukha 'Sipahi'(soldier). A self-styled 'General' of the KCF, thirty-five-year-old Sukhdev Singh belonged to Panjwar village in Amritsar and owned nine acres of land.
  15. "Ajmer Singh's new work engages with 1984 Catastrophe". World Sikh News. Archived from the original on 4 January 2010. Retrieved 23 January 2016.
  16. "Gursikhs and Inspirational Living". Ektaone.com. Archived from the original on 25 June 2009. Retrieved 23 January 2016.
  17. Walia, Varinder; Gurbaxpuri (8 March 2001). "Kin of slain Babbar Khalsa chief shift abroad". The Tribune (Tribune News Service). Retrieved 23 January 2016.
  18. Singh, Gurpreet 1996, p. 97 – "He joined the Punjab Police as a constable in 1971. In the early 1980s he came under the influence of Bhindranwale and resigned from the police force."
  19. Bharadwaj, Ajay (27 August 2004). "Babla's escape revives fear of militant strikes". The Times of India. Archived from the original on 24 October 2012. Retrieved 23 January 2016.
  20. "Sikhs Kill 6 on Courthouse Steps". Associated Press (Wilmington Morning Star). 6 April 1986. Retrieved 23 January 2016.
  21. "India editor slain as violence spreads". Chicago Tribune. 13 May 1984. Retrieved 23 January 2016. Rioting Hindus set fire to 15 Sikh shops, a bank a library and 15 buses in the city of Jullundur Saturday after terrorists killed a newspaper editor who wrote that Punjab state has become a slaughterhouse. The editor, Ramesh Chander, was shot by four men with...
  22. "Murder prompts riot". Wilimington Morning Star. 13 May 1984. Retrieved 23 January 2016.
  23. "Top Sikh extremist shot dead by Indian police". New Straits Times. 13 July 1988. Retrieved 23 January 2016.
  24. "The World, section 1". Los Angeles Times. 6 April 1986. Retrieved 23 January 2016. Sikh extremists shot their way into a courthouse in the Punjab city of Jullundur, killed six policemen and freed three prisoners accused of killing a Hindu editor, authorities said.
  25. Chicago Tribune Wires; NEWS (5 April 1986). "SIKH GUNMEN SLAY 6 COPS IN PUNJAB". Chicago Tribune. p. 14. Retrieved 23 January 2016.{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
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  27. "Terrorists kill 6 policemen, free prisoners". Ludington Daily News. 4 April 1986. p. 8. Retrieved 23 January 2016.
  28. "Sikhs kill 6, free 3 prisoners". The Spokesman-Review and Spokane Chronicle. 6 April 1986. p. A6.
  29. "Sikh extremists kill 6 policemen, free 3 prisoners". Eugene Register-Guard. 6 April 1986. Archived from the original on 17 July 2012. Retrieved 21 October 2020.
  30. Mahmood 1997, p. 168?
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  32. Gupta, G. V. (7 March 1999). "Book Review:Bullet for Bullet: My Life as a Police Officer:'Bullet-for-bullet is not my baby'". Tribuneindia.com. Retrieved 23 January 2016.
  33. Belle, G.G. (3 October 1986). "Disguised Sikhs attack compound of police chief". The Free-Lance Star. p. 3. Archived from the original on 13 July 2012. Retrieved 1 October 2009.
  34. "Boca Raton News - Google News Archive Search". news.google.com.
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  38. "The Spokesman-Review - Google News Archive Search". news.google.com.
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  40. The Windsor Star (24 April 2008). "India files complaint over 'martyrs' parade". Canada.com. Archived from the original on 23 January 2016. Retrieved 23 January 2016. One of those featured – Gen. Labh Singh – led the assassination attempt on the director-general of Punjab police, Julio Ribeiro, in 1986.
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  87. Herald Wire Services (13 July 1988). "IN THE WORLD, front section". The Miami Herald (FINAL ed.). p. 2A. Security forces killed one of India's most wanted Sikh militants Tuesday and said his death was a major blow to the biggest group fighting for an independent Sikh homeland in Punjab state. They said Sukhdev Singh, a self-styled "lieutenant general" of the Khalistan Commando Force, was shot dead when he tried to evade a police patrol in the state's Hoshiarpur district.
  88. Pettigrew, Joyce J. M. (1995). The Sikhs of the Punjab : unheard voices of State and guerrilla violence. Internet Archive. London ; Atlantic Highlands, N.J. : Zed Books. pp. 201–202. ISBN 978-1-85649-355-0.
  89. Banerjee, Ajay. "MSP hike rejected as too meagre". tribuneindia.com. Retrieved 23 January 2016. Sources in the Punjab Police said at least six bhog ceremonies had been conducted in the past few months and their growing number had caused worry. These include the bhog to remember "general" Labh Singh of the Khalistan Commando Force

References
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