Pakistan’s New Punjab Blueprint: Golden Temple At The Heart Of ISI’s Hybrid War Plan

Last Updated:July 15, 2025, 13:44 IST

Intelligence inputs accessed on July 14, 2025, reveal a renewed push to use the sacred site as both a shield and a trigger.

Golden Temple in Amritsar. (PTI File Image)

A sinister new blueprint by Pakistan’s Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI), accessed by CNN-News18, aims to destabilise Punjab using a hybrid warfare model that mixes terrorism, psychological operations, digital propaganda, and religious manipulation. Intelligence agencies have confirmed that ISI is reviving tactics reminiscent of the 1980s insurgency period — this time with advanced tools and global collaboration — to trigger unrest centered around the Golden Temple.

Golden Temple: Symbol, Shield, and Target

The core of the new operational blueprint is the tactical and symbolic exploitation of the Golden Temple. Intelligence inputs accessed on July 14, 2025, reveal a renewed push to use the sacred site as both a shield and a trigger. The recent bomb threat email received by the Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee (SGPC), referencing RDX, points to coordinated efforts by ISI-backed groups to provoke mass outrage through calculated targeting of religious sensitivities.

Officials warn that any miscalculated action near the shrine could lead to a nationwide standoff, comparable to the events of 1984. The Golden Temple’s sanctity makes it difficult to fully police, thereby creating security blind spots that ISI intends to exploit for arms dumps, propaganda filming, and sheltering operatives. The convergence of religious emotion, political symbolism, and lack of surveillance provides ISI with a potent recipe for unrest.

Tech, Terror, and Trauma: Tools of Psychological Warfare

The modern version of this conflict involves far more than guns. The ISI is running a full-spectrum psychological war — from fake bomb threats like those targeting Air India in 2024 to digitally manipulated martyr videos invoking nostalgia and trauma of past violence. Agencies have confirmed the strategic use of AI-generated deepfakes, inflammatory gurdwara sermons, graffiti campaigns, and calls for referendums — creating a virtual ecosystem of dissent and chaos.

Social media platforms, encrypted messaging apps such as Threema and Element, and diaspora-driven campaigns are being weaponised to incite separatist sentiment. Unofficial Khalistan referendums have been inflated with false participation claims — 127,000 in San Francisco, 55,000 in Calgary, and 37,000 in New Zealand — used not only for propaganda but also as fundraising tools through NGO fronts.

Gangster-Terror Nexus and Cross-Border Logistics

Pakistan’s strategy leans heavily on the deepening nexus between gangsters and Khalistani terror outfits. Operatives like Goldy Brar have claimed responsibility for killings in Russia and California, showcasing a chilling international reach. The assassination attempt on Shiromani Akali Dal’s Sukhbir Badal near the Golden Temple by Chaura, a Pakistan-trained Babbar Khalsa terrorist, is another example of targeted violence backed by decades-old terror linkages.

Drone incursions continue to be a critical conduit for cross-border smuggling. In 2024 alone, Punjab recorded 286 such instances involving AK rifles, heroin, IEDs, and even satellite phones. Border districts like Tarn Taran and Ferozepur have emerged as key nodes for these operations.

Digital Insurgency and Diaspora Involvement

Key figures like Gurpatwant Singh Pannun have escalated their rhetoric, threatening events such as Pravasi Bharatiya Divas and invoking terror tactics similar to Hamas. From prison, Amritpal Singh has announced the launch of a political party, pledging to declare Khalistan within a year if elected — further blurring the lines between secessionist ideology and democratic posturing.

The use of psychological tactics is relentless. The 19 fake threats to Air India in three days during 2024, later traced to SFJ’s digital disruption campaigns, underscore the new era of “keyboard insurgency." Posters glorifying Bhindranwale, calls for embassy attacks, and AI-generated narratives about injustice against Sikhs continue to flood diaspora and domestic spaces.

Crackdown and Countermeasures

Indian agencies have responded with intensified crackdowns. In 2024, 66 terrorists were arrested, 12 active modules were neutralised, and 1,099 kg of heroin was seized. The NIA blocked over 7,500 radical URLs, seized Rs 73 crore from terror-linked scams, and invoked the UAPA to target SFJ operatives’ digital and financial assets. Courts have denied bail in key cases, signalling a firm judicial stance.

Manoj Gupta

Group Editor, Investigations & Security Affairs, Network18

Group Editor, Investigations & Security Affairs, Network18

Location :

First Published:

News india Pakistan’s New Punjab Blueprint: Golden Temple At The Heart Of ISI’s Hybrid War Plan