Deepak Ranga, who had fired the rocket, was arrested by the NIA in January last week from Gorakhpur in the state of Uttar Pradesh.

Ranga is a close associate of Canada-based Landa, who the Indian government accuses of terrorism, and Pakistan-based “gangster-turned-terrorist” Harvinder Singh Sandhu alias Rinda.

The rocket was powerful but it rebounded after hitting the wall and no one suffered injuries. However, the incident triggered a panic wave in the state.

The NIA registered a case suo moto on September 20, 2022, after it emerged that terrorist outfits and terrorists based abroad were operating in tandem with leaders and members of organised criminal gangs operating in northern states of the country to commit targeted killings and violent criminal acts. It also emerged that these networks were also engaged in smuggling arms, ammunition, explosives, etc. across the border, according to Indian police.