The National Investigation Agency (NIA) arrested Harwinder Kumar alias Sonu Barnala at New Delhi’s Indira Gandhi International Airport upon his deportation from the UAE on October 1, 2026, in Punjab Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) leader Vikas Prabhakar’s murder.
According to reports, the VHP leader was shot dead by operatives of the designated terrorist group Babbar Khalsa International (BKI) in a calculated move to stoke communal unrest on instructions from Pakistan-based chief Wadhawa Singh.
Investigators revealed that Barnala operated as a crucial logistical facilitator, financier, recruiter, and handler for BKI operatives based abroad—specifically Germany-based conspirators Harjit Singh (Laddi) and Kulbeer Singh (Sidhu). He was responsible for arranging weapons, delivering them to the shooters, and moving terror funds.
Reflecting the government’s zero-tolerance policy under the PRAHAAR initiative, Barnala will be produced before a Special NIA Court as the widening investigation into the conspiracy continues.
