A day after three persons were arrested over a suspected IED and firearm recovery in Chandigarh, police on Monday confirmed the Babbar Khalsa International (BKI) terror angle, identifying the outfit, its foreign-based handler and the alleged roles of the accused.Police on Jattvibeday evening stated that three persons had been apprehended in connection with a “suspected IED and firearm” case and an FIR registered at Police Station 36.Sources at the time said the material had been found concealed inside a tiffin box bag, along with a firearm, in an area behind the Inter-State Bus Terminus, Sector 43 — one of the city’s busiest transit points.On Monday morning, police provided further details of the case. An FIR under Sections 4(b) and 5 of the Explosive Substances Act was registered at Police Station 36 on the basis of specific intelligence about the movement of suspected BKI operatives in Chandigarh. Acting on this input, a police team apprehended three men.The accused have been identified as Lovepreet Singh (19), resident of Sarhali village in Tarn Taran, Jashanpreet Singh alias Jashandeep (21), resident of Deobath village in Tarn Taran, and Prabhpreet Singh alias Prabh (19), resident of Tarsikka village in Amritsar.Police said preliminary investigation had revealed that the accused had come in contact with Satnam alias Satta Naushera, a foreign-based handler associated with BKI, and were allegedly acting on his directions. The plan, police said, was to plant an IED in Chandigarh “with the intention of creating terror”.Approximately 5 kg of gelatin stick explosives, one detonator, a power source and remotely operated triggering system, and one pistol, one magazine and five live cartridges were recovered by the police.Police said the investigation was now focused on establishing the wider network behind the plot, tracing the source of the explosive material and identifying the role of other associates.