Bishnoi aide Zeeshan key plotter behind Jalandhar attack: Cops

At 22, Mohammad Zeeshan Akhtar has emerged as the key conspirator behind the second grenade attack in his hometown of Jalandhar in less than a month.

- Ravinder Vasudeva and Navrajdeep Singh

JALANDHAR/CHANDIGARH:

Addressing a press conference in Chandigarh on Tuesday afternoon, Punjab Police special director general of police Arpit Shukla named Akhtar as the key conspirator behind the grenade blast at the house of senior BJP leader Manoranjan Kalia in the wee hours.

The blast comes less than a month after Akhtar, along with Pakistan-based ISI agent Shahzaad Bhatti, lobbed a grenade at YouTuber Rozer Sandhu's house at Raipur Rasoolpur village in Jalandhar district. There was no loss of life and damage to property as the grenade didn't explode in the attack on March 16. Seven people were arrested and Bhatti, Zeeshan were among those booked under Section 109 (murder) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), Sections 3, 4 and 5 of the Explosives Act and also under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA) at the Maqsudan police station.