Seven persons were killed — one SP, three police officers and three civilians — in July 29th’s “fidayeen” attack, the worst in Punjab in over a decade.
A top Intelligence Bureau official said the attack had the modus operandi of the banned Lashkar-e-Taiba which operates from Pakistan.
Police recovered Chinese made AK-47s, Chinese grenades and two GPS locators.
The militants did not have any mark of identification on them and the army fatigues they wore had no tags.
Given the sudden nature of the attack there was no time to erect a proper cordon. As a result, the siege was witnessed by a grandstand crowd.
The SWAT team requested the public to keep quiet during the anti-terror operation.
At 5.10 p.m., from the roof, two of them raised their hands and the signal was answered by the teams downstairs. From the roofs the assembled crowds broke into loud cheers. After 12 hours, the siege was over.
Punjab Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal said, "Militancy is a national problem, not a state problem. A national policy is needed to tackle terrorism."