De-addiction centre owner among 2 arrested in arms racket bust in Punjab
In a major crackdown on illegal arms trafficking in Punjab, the Amritsar Police has dismantled a cross-border weapons smuggling network and arrested two individuals, including
In a major crackdown on illegal arms trafficking in Punjab, the Amritsar Police has dismantled a cross-border weapons smuggling network and arrested two individuals, including the owner of a de-addiction centre. The police also seized seven sophisticated pistols and 40 live cartridges, officials said on Wednesday. The arrested accused have been identified as Surjit Singh alias Rana (33), a resident of Sur Singh village in Tarn Taran district, and Gulbagh Singh alias Batth (26), a resident of Bhai Manj Singh Road in Amritsar. Police said Gulbagh Singh runs a de-addiction centre in the Sultanwind area of the city.
Read Full Story According to Director General of Police (DGP) Gaurav Yadav, the recovery includes one 9mm Glock pistol, one.30 bore Tisas Turkiye pistol, one.30 bore specially modified pistol, four.30 bore pistols and 40 live cartridges. The DGP said preliminary investigations revealed that the accused were in contact with foreign-based smugglers through social media platforms and were receiving illegal weapon consignments through cross-border routes for further distribution to criminal elements. "The arrested accused were receiving weapon consignments via cross-border routes for further supply to criminal elements," Yadav said, adding that efforts are underway to establish both backward and forward linkages to identify other members of the arms supply network.
Sharing details of the operation, Amritsar Police Commissioner Gurpreet Singh Bhullar said the arrests were made based on specific intelligence inputs. Police teams initially recovered two pistols from the accused and subsequently seized five more sophisticated firearms during sustained interrogation and follow-up operations. Bhullar said verification of criminal records revealed that Surjit Singh is already wanted in a commercial quantity narcotics case registered at Bhikhiwind Police Station in Tarn Taran, indicating his alleged involvement in organised criminal activities. He added that the investigation is continuing and more arrests and recoveries are expected in the coming days as police work to unravel the wider network behind the smuggling operation.
A case has been registered under relevant provisions of the Arms Act in Amritsar, police said, adding further investigations are in progress. Ends
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