Mohali, May 1 : A special National Investigation Agency (NIA) court in Punjab's SAS Nagar (Mohali) has convicted and sentenced two men to over five years rigorous imprisonment in a 2020 case involving the hoisting of a Khalistani flag at the Deputy Commissionerâ??s office in the state's Moga, the agency said on Friday.

The convicted accused, identified as Inderjeet Singh and Jaspal Singh, both residents of Moga, have been awarded five years and six months of imprisonment along with a fine of Rs 16,000 each. The court found them guilty under multiple provisions of the Indian Penal Code, the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, and the Prevention of Insults to National Honour Act.

According to the NIA, the case relates to an incident on August 14, 2020, when the duo allegedly hoisted a Khalistani flag atop the Moga Deputy Commissionerâ??s office building, a day before Independence Day. Investigations revealed that the act was carried out at the instigation of Gurpatwant Singh Pannun, general counsel of the banned outfit Sikhs for Justice (SFJ), who has been designated as a terrorist by the Indian government.

The agency stated that the accused had accessed the administrative complex, climbed to the top of the building, and replaced the national flag with a saffron-yellow flag bearing the word 'KHALISTAN'. In the process, they allegedly cut the rope of the Indian tricolour, causing it to fall, and subsequently dragged it, amounting to an insult to the national flag.

The NIA had earlier filed a charge sheet against the two convicts, along with two other arrested accused and two absconders based in the United States â?? Pannun and his associate Rana Singh alias Harpreet Singh. Both absconders were declared proclaimed offenders by the Mohali special court in 2021.

Further investigations in the case RC-30/2020/NIA/DLI had revealed that Harpreet Singh had facilitated payments to Inderjeet Singh and Jaspal Singh for carrying out the act. The agency also pointed to a provocative video uploaded by Pannun between August 10 and 11, 2020, in which he urged people in Punjab and Haryana to hoist Khalistani flags at government buildings. He had allegedly announced monetary rewards, including $125,000 for hoisting such a flag at Delhiâ??s Red Fort and $2,500 for similar acts elsewhere.

The NIA said the conviction underscores continued efforts to curb activities linked to banned organisations and safeguard national integrity.

/IANS