SOUTH ASIA INTELLIGENCE REVIEW
TLP: Domesticated monster
On October 24, the Federal Interior Ministry notified the ban on the Tehreek-i-Labbaik Pakistan (TLP), declaring that the Federal Government had “reasonable grounds” to believe the religio-political party was connected to terrorism. The notification stated:
The federal government has reasonable grounds to believe that TLP is connected with and concerned in terrorism. In exercise of the powers conferred by Section 11B (1) (a) of the Anti-Terrorism Act, 1997 (XXVII of 1997), the federal government hereby orders TLP to be a proscribed organisation for the purpose of the Act and lists the aforesaid organisation in the first schedule to the said Act.
The development comes a day after the Federal Cabinet, on October 23, approved a proposal to proscribe the party under the Anti-Terrorism Act, after nationwide protests over Gaza claimed the lives of several protesters and Police officers and paralysed major highways and city roads from Karachi to Islamabad. The decision was taken at a meeting chaired by Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on a proposal from the Punjab Government. A press release issued by the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) after the meeting disclosed that the ban was “unanimously” approved by the Federal Cabinet. The Interior Ministry briefed the Cabinet on what it called the TLP’s “violent and terrorist activities,” stressing that the organisation had repeatedly incited unrest across the country.
This is not first time TLP has been banned, as the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Government proscribed the group on April 14, 2021, after violent protests caused the deaths of two Policemen and left 340 injured. The Federal Interior Ministry informed the Cabinet that the 2021 ban on TLP was lifted after six months on the assurance that it would refrain from violence, and that the current ban on the group stemmed from its reneging on those guarantees. “In the past, security personnel and innocent bystanders have been killed in violent protests and rallies by the TLP,” the PMO statement added.
Earlier on October 17, the Punjab provincial Cabinet approved the imposition of a ban on TLP and forwarded a summary to the Federal Government for further action. This was announced by Punjab Information Minister Azma Bokhari while addressing a press conference in Lahore. She revealed that the Punjab Cabinet had approved the ban on TLP and sent the case to the Federal Government for implementation. “The misuse of loudspeakers will now be strictly controlled under the Loudspeaker Act,” she added. The Information Minister stated, further, that the Government and the State had now decided to deal firmly with the group. Providing details of the recent violence, she noted that 200 Police personnel were injured, 17 vehicles were damaged, and two completely burnt, “An inspector was martyred, one officer was shot in the arm, and another in the throat – he will never speak again.”
The far-right TLP, notorious for disruptive and violent protests, was founded by Khadim Hussain Rizvi on August 1, 2015. TLP has its ideological roots in Barelvi Islam, a mainstream sect traditionally seen as moderate, but for which blasphemy was a red line. It arose from the movement backing Mumtaz Qadri, the Police guard who assassinated Punjab Governor Salman Taseer on January 4, 2011, for criticizing Pakistan’s blasphemy laws. TLP has gained political and street influence by positioning itself as a guardian of the Prophet’s honour and blasphemy legislation.
Though, TLP gained significant public attention in 2016 through its protests regarding the execution of Mumtaz Qadri, it entered electoral politics in 2017. The party made its electoral debut in September 2017 in the NA-120 by-election in Lahore, the provincial capital of Punjab, where they finished in third place. The group later participated in the 2018 general election, emerging as a significant force in Pakistani politics. According to Gallup Pakistan, the leading survey research agency in Pakistan, TLP bagged 2.2 million votes in the 2018 General elections, mostly from the eastern Punjab province, and won two provincial seats in southern Sindh. It also emerged as the third-largest party in Punjab, behind former PM Imran Khan’s PTI and ex-PM Nawaz Sharif’s Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N). TLP saw a rise in its vote share from the 2018 General Election to the 2024 General Election. Over 2.89 million people voted for the far-right party in the 2024 national elections, 760.000 more than in the 2018 polls.
Behind the political rise of TLP, were the shadowy hands of the Pakistan Army. The pattern of the Pakistani military using religious extremist groups for political leverage is not new. The Army has long been patronising far-right religious groups that undermine democratic institutions and, when the civilian Government fail to contain their activities, the armed forces come forward as messiahs for the nation. The Army had been accused of using TLP as proxies to keep the civilian Governments in check, advancing its own political agenda to keep the Imran Khan-led PTI Government in control. In turn, PTI was also lenient towards TLP, as it had been cutting the vote share of its main political opponent, PML-N.
After the current ban, PML-N leader and adviser to the Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Political Affairs Rana Sanaullah observed, on October 24, 2025, that the TLP was “created in a bid to cut into PMLN’s vote bank.” Speaking on Geo News programme ‘Naya Pakistan’, in response to a question regarding TLP’s future as a political party and whether it was being kept as an option to be used against rival political parties, Sanaullah agreed that TLP had been used in the past for that purpose, and went on to quip that “it was created to steal votes from the PML-N’s vote bank.”
Apart from electoral politics, TLP was notorious for staging violent protests to bring the nation and public order to a standstill. The group has staged nine major protests, each yielding written or verbal agreements with the Government, revealing a pattern of state appeasement.
In November 2017, TLP’s first major demonstration targeted Islamabad over a controversial election law amendment. The three-week sit-in concluded with Law Minister Zahid Hamid’s resignation and a PML-N – Government pact.
In April 2018, TLP blockaded Punjab roads to enforce the 2017 deal, ending the blockade after 12 days with another settlement.
October 2018 saw nationwide unrest after the Supreme Court acquitted Asia Bibi, a blasphemy accused on death row; the PTI Government inked a five-point agreement to appeal the ruling and add her to the exit control list.
November 2018 brought fresh threats over Asia Bibi, leading to the “protective custody” of TLP Chief Khadim Hussain Rizvi and senior leaders.
In November 2020, protests erupted over French blasphemous caricatures; the Government agreed in writing to expel the French ambassador and boycott French goods, though the commitments remained unfulfilled. The April 12, 2021 clashes followed Saad Rizvi’s arrest, including 16 Policemen taken hostage. The group was briefly banned under the Anti-Terrorism Act (ATA). A compromise was made which made TLP agreed to call off the protests as the Federal Government tabled a resolution in Parliament to debate the French Ambassador’s expulsion. The Government also agreed that they would release Saad Rizvi soon, and all criminal cases against the protestors would be withdrawn.
However, Saad Rizvi who was lodged in Kot Lakhpat Jail for six months, and could not be released by Government within the promised time. Rizvi’s uncle, Amir Hussain Rizvi filed a petition with the Lahore High Court against his detention. Following the completion of the hearing on the case, the Supreme Court (SC) on October 1, 2021 ordered Saad Rizvi’s release. However, the Federal Review Board on October 2, 2021, extended his detention by one month.
This led to another round of TLP protests that started from October 22, 2021, initiating a long march to Islamabad. The Imran Khan Government initially approved the use of force against the protestors, which was opposed by the Pakistani Army. More than eight Policemen were killed while hundreds of SF personnel sustained injuries during this phase of protests. A Government team headed by Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi and National Assembly Speaker Asad Qaiser reached an agreement with Mufti Muneeb-ur-Rehman, a prominent Sunni cleric representing TLP, on October 31, 2021, which partially resolved the crisis. Details of the agreement were not publicly disclosed, but a TLP spokesperson later indicated that TLP would be removed from the list of proscribed organisations and Saad Rizvi would be released. On November 7, 2021, the Federal Government removed TLP from the list of proscribed organisations and removed TLP chief Saad Rizvi’s name from the fourth schedule of the Anti-Terrorism Act (ATA) on November 11, 2021, as agreed upon. Along with Saad Rizvi, 54 other members of the TLP, who were involved in the destruction of public property and inflicting grievous injuries on the Police, were also removed from the fourth schedule of the ATA. Saad Rizvi was later released on November 18, 2021, on the death anniversary of Khadim Hussain Rizvi.
After a brief lull, TLP once again called for a one-day nationwide “shutter-down strike” against inflation and fuel hikes on February 27, 2023. The strike led to temporary road blockages. Markets and some transportation services were affected.
In July 2024, a week-long (July 13-19) Faizabad Interchange sit-in demanded a boycott of Israeli products and more aid for Palestinians, amid the Gaza conflict. The week-long protest concluded after successful talks between the TLP and the Federal Government. The Government agreed to send over 1,000 tons of food and other relief supplies to Gaza before July 31. The Government also pledged to continue and enhance its efforts to assist the people of Palestine.
On October 16, 2025, the Punjab Police released details of casualties and damage caused during TLP protests over the past nine years. According to the Police report, 11 Police personnel were killed and 1,648 injured in various violent demonstrations organized by TLP between 2016 and 2025. Among the injured, 69 officers were permanently disabled, 202 sustained serious injuries, and 1,194 suffered minor wounds. The report further noted that 16 civilians lost their lives, while another 54 were injured during violent clashes with protesters. 97 Police vehicles were completely destroyed, two were set on fire, and 10 Police buildings sustained severe damage during the TLP protests. Police records showed that 305 cases were registered under anti-terrorism laws, and 480 cases were filed under other criminal provisions against TLP protesters. In the recent cases alone, 1,529 individuals were named, and over 17,800 unidentified persons were booked for involvement in violence.
Though TLP has been banned for the time being, the Government’s intent does not appear to be to finish the group from its core, as it has mass public support within Pakistani society. After the latest ban notification, Rana Sanaullah asserted that the intent behind the ban was not to eliminate the party but to purge it of “anti-state and terrorist elements.” He added that no one had any issue with TLP’s religious views, but whenever the party staged protests in the past, it “led to violence and loss of life, such as the 2017 Faizabad demonstrations.”
Despite the ban, TLP’s ideology and support base remains among the already radicalised segments of Pakistani society, as well as within the Government and Army, and is likely to resurface after the current unrest has faded somewhat in public memory.
Punjabi Gangs: Sinister Enlargement
The recent targeted killing in Fresno, California, United States (US), linked to transnational Punjab-oriented Indian gang rivalries, marks a critical new phase in the global expansion of these conflicts. On October 18, 2025, Banwari Godara, an associate of gangster Harry Boxer – a close associate of the Lawrence Bishnoi gang – was killed, and another person injured in a shooting at a truck repair yard on 5400 Block, South Cedar Avenue, Fresno. Although no arrests have been made and official details remain undisclosed, the Rohit Godara-Goldy Brar gang publicly claimed responsibility, declaring that Boxer was the intended target, and warning Bishnoi gang members of similar consequences, while labelling Bishnoi a “traitor.” In response, Arzoo Bishnoi, a member of the Bishnoi gang, threatened Rohit Godara with retaliation, asserting that Boxer was safe and that their response would come “not with social media posts, but with bullets.”
The Fresno incident confirms the split between the Bishnoi gang and Goldy Brar, which began after Goldy Brar and Rohit Godara failed to help Anmol Bishnoi, Lawrence Bishnoi’s brother, secure bail following his November 2024 arrest in California for document forgery. Though Anmol was later released with an ankle tracker, the episode deepened the rift.
What began as turf and extortion battles in Punjab and adjoining Indian states, spilled over into Canada – currently witnessing a surge in Punjabi gang violence – and has now metastasized into the US and other parts of the world, with criminal-terrorist networks exploiting diaspora links, drug trafficking routes and social media, for operational expansion.
On October 21, 2025, Canada – which recently designated the Bishnoi gang a terrorist entity – recorded another targeted attack when Punjabi singer Teji Kahlon was seriously injured outside a private event. Members of the Rohit Godara gang claimed responsibility, accusing him of supporting rival gangs with money, weapons, and information. This incident forms part of a broader pattern of gang-related violence in Canada, including cases of extortion and targeted shootings directed at Indian-origin businesses and cultural figures, such as the three reported shooting attempts on comedian Kapil Sharma’s café in Surrey.
Bishnoi gang member Randeep Malik aka Randeep Singh, who runs a transport business in the US and is wanted by India’s National Investigation Agency (NIA), claimed via a Facebook post on September 3, 2025, that he ordered a shooting targeting the hideout of rivals from the Romi King and Prince gang in Odivelas, Lisbon, marking the first major Indian gang conflict in Portugal. Malik was previously briefly detained by US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) in August 2025. He is also linked to several high-profile cases in India, including grenade attacks in Chandigarh and other violent activities carried out in coordination with the Lawrence Bishnoi gang.
In recent years, several Punjabi gang leaders, primarily based in the US and other Western countries, have sought to expand their transnational influence. Notably, the Rohit Godara-Goldy Brar faction, then operating on behalf of the Bishnoi gang, claimed responsibility for the killing of drug trafficker Sunil Yadav aka Goli – wanted in multiple cases in Rajasthan and allegedly involved in smuggling narcotics into India via Pakistan – in Stockton, California, on December 23, 2024, accusing him of being an informer. Earlier, in April 2024, Goldy Brar had claimed responsibility for the beheading of Ajay Rana, reportedly associated with the Bhupi Rana gang, in Russia; however, there has been no official confirmation regarding the precise location or date of the incident. A January 2025 report indicates that the ongoing rivalry between the Bishnoi-Goldy Brar and Bambiha-Lucky Patial gangs had led to more than 20 killings across multiple locations, primarily within and beyond Indian Punjab, since 2016.
US law enforcement, especially in California, has stepped up action against Indian-origin gangs. Under the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI)’s nationwide ‘Summer Heat’ initiative, eight gangsters, including Pavittar Singh Batala, wanted in India for alleged terror activities and reportedly tied to the banned Babbar Khalsa International (BKI), were arrested, and arms and ammunition seized, on July 11, 2025, in San Joaquin County for kidnapping and torture for extortion. Other arrested members were Dilpreet Singh, Sarbjit Singh, Gurtaj Singh, Amritpall Singh, Vishal Singh, Arshpreet Singh, and Manpreet Randhawa. The FBI reported that the gang engaged in extortion of Indian-American business owners, forced labour, truck cargo hijackings across California’s Central Valley, weapons and drug trafficking, and international political violence. Most of the accused were reportedly associated with the separatist Sikhs For Justice (SFJ), banned in India, highlighting a nexus between pro-Khalistan extremist elements and organized criminal activity in the US.
On October 14, 2025, fugitive gangster Amit Sharma aka Jack Pandit, a key operative of the Rohit Godara-Goldy Brar gang, was arrested in Sacramento, California, following intelligence from the Rajasthan Anti-Gangster Task Force (AGTF) shared with the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI)’s Interpol Branch, which issued a Red Corner Notice and alerted US authorities. Pandit managed the gang’s finances, distributed extortion funds abroad via hawala and other illegal channels, provided funding, safe havens and fake documents to fugitives, and was involved in drug trafficking and illegal arms procurement.
Another high-profile arrest occurred on April 17, 2025, when Harpreet Singh, aka Happy Passia, wanted by the NIA for multiple grenade attacks in Punjab and linked to BKI, was apprehended. Passia had illegally entered the US in 2021 via a human trafficking network and had been evading capture using burner phones with international codes. NIA had announced a reward of INR 5 lakh for information leading to his arrest. Passia faces approximately 33 criminal cases, including several terrorism-related cases, and is believed to have collaborated with Pakistan’s Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI)-linked anti-India criminal and terrorist networks operating from the US.
Although several gangsters have been arrested in the US, their extradition has often been delayed, with courts declining deportation in some cases and the process taking considerable time in others, despite repeated requests from Indian law enforcement agencies. In December 2024, the Ministry of External Affairs stated that, over the preceding five years, India submitted 178 extradition requests to various countries, with 65 concerning fugitive criminals currently under consideration by US authorities. Fugitives often exploit these delays, using different avenues to impede efforts for their extradition from these countries.
However, in a significant development, on October 25, 2025, Haryana Police arrested wanted fugitive and Bishnoi gang member Lakhvinder Kumar at New Delhi airport following his deportation from the US. He is accused in multiple cases involving extortion, intimidation, illegal possession and use of firearms, and attempted murder in Haryana. A Red Notice against him had been issued by Interpol on October 26, 2024, at the request of the Haryana Police through the CBI.
During Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit to Washington on February 13, 2025, Indian security agencies shared a list of 12 US-based gangsters with American authorities, including Anmol Bishnoi, Satwinder Singh aka Goldy Brar (designated by India as an individual terrorist), Darmanjot Singh Kahlon aka Darman Kahlon, Amritpal Singh aka Amrit Bal, Harjot Singh, Harbir Singh, Navroop Singh, Swaran Singh aka Fauji, Sahil Kailash Ritoli, Yogesh aka Bobby Beri, Ashu aka Bhanu Pratap Sambhli, and Aman Sambhi. These individuals were reportedly involved in arms smuggling, narcotics trafficking, and terrorism-related activities, with connections to Pakistan-based operatives. Despite the US committing to joint action against organized crime and security threats, their extradition remains pending. Many of these criminals frequently move between the US and Canada, exploiting legal loopholes to evade law enforcement. Notably, Goldy Brar was briefly listed on Canada’s BOLO (Be On the Lookout) Program’s most-wanted list in May 2023, but was removed in April 2024 without any official explanation from Canadian authorities.
Most of these Indian gangs operate on a cell-based structure with minimal central leadership, making them resilient to crackdowns but prone to internal rivalries and conflicts. By exploiting community support to seek asylum or resist extradition, many of these gang members end up associating with separatist groups, such as pro-Khalistan outfits, further complicating the situation within the diaspora community.
Meanwhile, recruitment from India into these gangs has increased, driven by the lure of lucrative offers. In November 2024, an Indian intelligence officer revealed that gangster Rajesh Kumar aka Sonu Khatri, had facilitated the movement of nearly 100 migrants from villages around Punjab’s Nawanshahr region to the US. Sonu Khatri was listed by India’s Union Ministry of Home Affairs (UMHA) among the 28 most wanted gangster-terrorist fugitives in April 2023 while operating from Brazil. He is believed to have moved to California in late 2023, continuing to orchestrate targeted killings and gang activities in Punjab and neighbouring states.
These fugitive gangsters and criminals frequently exploit vulnerabilities in international border control systems, using forged passports and leveraging corrupt networks to evade security checks. The extensive transnational connections and financial resources of these organized crime syndicates have contributed to a higher success rate in irregular migration, particularly through the so-called ‘donkey route’ to countries such as the US. They also rely on human smuggling networks and fabricated identities, making it increasingly difficult for law enforcement agencies to trace and apprehend them.
These gangs also exploit illegal Punjabi migrants within the ‘trucking ecosystem’, leveraging the strong presence of Punjabi and Sikh communities in the US trucking industry, particularly in California and Texas, to conceal illicit operations. This includes the transport of fentanyl precursors, small arms, drugs, and other contraband through hidden compartments in trucks. Several fugitives wanted in India for terrorism-related offenses have gained control over significant segments of the US logistics network. Many of these individuals, often asylum seekers working as truck drivers while their applications are processed, are currently facing charges related to organized crime.
Beyond material crime, a disturbing trend is the intersection of these Punjabi gangs with separatist outfits, particularly pro-Khalistan groups. Gangster-terrorist networks exploit asylum systems and diaspora radicalization, making the law enforcement challenge in the US as much about national security as about organized crime.
More concerningly, the June 2025 arrest of Indo-Canadian gangster Opinder Singh Sian, associated with the Brothers Keepers gang, by the US Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) has highlighted a growing nexus among Chinese drug cartels, Pakistan’s ISI, and pro-Khalistan networks. Sian was found trafficking fentanyl precursor chemicals from China into the US, revealing an increasingly sophisticated collaboration between Khalistani operatives, Pakistani intelligence, Chinese chemical suppliers, and Latin American drug cartels. Investigations also identified approximately 40 Indo-Canadians allegedly supporting this network’s extremist activities in Punjab, Delhi, and Jammu and Kashmir.
In the US, Punjab-oriented gangs remain relatively small, compared to the more powerful and historically entrenched organized crime groups such as Mexican cartels and other national-level syndicates. However, their growing transnational reach and emerging collaborations with domestic criminal-terrorist networks have expanded their operational capacity, posing new challenges for law enforcement agencies to adapt to increasingly dynamic and complex criminal landscapes.
For India, the audacity of these gangs in publicly claiming responsibility for killings abroad, including in countries like the US, is a growing concern. The fallout from these overseas gang wars could increasingly impact domestic law enforcement and security, particularly in Punjab and neighbouring states.
The spread of Indian gang wars into the US is more than a law enforcement concern as it represents a complex transnational security challenge linking organized crime, terrorism, drug and arms smuggling, and illegal migration. Addressing it requires strategic, multilateral solutions that tackle both the immediate threats and the underlying conditions enabling these networks to flourish. The trajectory that began in Punjab, moved through Canada, and now echoes across American cities, demands vigilance, community trust-building, and policy innovation at the highest levels of national security in all countries involved.
