12 quizzed over attack on Indian ex-general

New Scotland Yard police headquarters is seen in London

New Scotland Yard police headquarters is seen in London

Published Oct 5, 2012

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London - British police were Friday questioning 12 people in connection with a knife attack in a London street on a retired Indian general, which is being treated as attempted murder.

Scotland Yard said that a further eight people had been arrested over the attack earlier Friday, following the arrest of four people in central England Thursday.

Lieutenant General Kuldeep Singh Brar, who led the raid to flush out armed Sikh militants from the Golden Temple in the Sikh holy city of Amritsar in 1984, was attacked near Oxford Street, in central London, last Sunday.

Scotland Yard said a gang of four men tried to kill the 78-year-old, who was injured in the attack, but has since been released from hospital.

The army veteran, who is on the hit-list of various Sikh militant groups, was on a private visit to London.

Brar commanded troops in the 1984 operation codenamed Blue Star that targeted Sikh militants fighting for an independent homeland of Khalistan.

“Four bearded tough-looking men wearing black jackets and black clothes pounced on me. One of them pushed my wife to the side, she fell down and started screaming for help. Three of them charged at me. One pulled out a dagger and tried to assassinate me,” Brar told broadcaster NDTV earlier this week.

Police said two people, a man and a woman, were arrested in Hillingdon, west London, on suspicion of murder early Friday. Three men aged 42, 37 and 30 were detained later Kensington and Chelsea, central London, and a further three men were held in nearby Holland Park.

The arrests followed the detention of four people - three men and a woman - in the Midlands, in central England, Thursday. - Sapa-dpa

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