Two terror suspects, Jagjit Singh alias Jagga and Naushad, arrested by the Delhi Police on 12 January, had been tasked with identifying and assassinating right-wing leaders by their foreign handlers.

On 14 January, two hand grenades were recovered from their rented accommodation beside a dismembered body in the Bhalswa Dairy area.

The police found traces of human blood at the rented accommodation of the accused. Three pistols and 22 live cartridges were also recovered.

Jagjit Singh is suspected to have links with a Canada-based Khalistani terrorist, while Naushad had been associated with terror outfit Harkat ul-Ansar.

Addressing a press conference, Additional Commissioner of Police (Special Cell) Pramod Singh Kushwah said the accused were asked “to prove their capabilities” to the terrorist organisation and they targeted a 21-year-old man and beheaded him.

They also chopped off his body into pieces and stored at their residence for a few days before packing it in plastic bags and disposing of it in water bodies.

The victim was a Hindu but his identity is yet to be ascertained, he said.

“We found blood traces at the rented accommodation of the accused persons and were led to a chopped body near Bhalswa Dairy. The accused picked up the victim on December 15, killed him and sent a video of the act to their handler Sohail, who is associated with terror outfit Lashkar-e-Taiba and linked to Pakistan's Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI),” he said.

He added that they had targeted a few persons and were being instructed by the handlers and leaders based in foreign countries and were planning to execute their task in the coming months.

Jagjit was being handled by gangster-turned-terrorist Arshdeep Singh Gill (alias Arsh Dalla), while Naushad was being handled by suspected cross-border ISI handlers.

With their arrest, the Delhi Police claims to have averted a major terror strike.

(With inputs from PTI)