— PUSHED-IN WEAPON CONSIGNMENTS WERE MEANT TO FUEL INTER-GANG RIVALRIES IN PUNJAB: DGP GAURAV YADAV
— PAK-BASED SMUGGLERS WERE USING DRONES TO DROP ARMS AND NARCOTICS CONSIGNMENTS: CP GURPREET SINGH BHULLAR
CHANDIGARH/AMRITSAR, October 2:
In a major breakthrough amidst the ongoing drive to make Punjab a safe and secure state as per directions of Chief Minister Bhagwant Singh Mann, Amritsar Commissionerate Police has dismantled a cross-border arms and narcotics smuggling network with links to Pakistan with the arrest of its five operatives including one juvenile and recovered 12 sophisticated .30 bore pistols and 1.5 Kg Heroin from their possession, said Director General of Police (DGP) Punjab Gaurav Yadav here on Thursday.
Those arrested have been Joban Singh (22), Karandeep Singh alias Pandit (19) and Ajaypal Singh (18), trio residents of of village Mari Megha in Tarn Taran; Jashanpreet Singh (18) of village Rania in Amritsar and 16-years-old juvenile.
DGP Gaurav Yadav said that preliminary investigation has revealed that the arrested accused persons, Joban Singh and Jashanpreet Singh, were in direct touch with Pak-based smugglers and communicating via social media to receive and deliver arms and narcotics consignments. The pushed-in weapon consignments were meant to fuel inter-gang rivalries in Punjab, he said.
The DGP said that further investigation is underway to establish forward and backward linkages in this case to expose the full nexus.
Sharing operation details, Commissioner of Police (CP) Amritsar Gurpreet Singh Bhullar said that during a naka at Gate Hakima area, police teams have arrested suspects Joban Singh, Karandeep Singh alias Pandit, and Ajaypal Singh and recovered five .30 bore pistols from their possession. All three arrested accused persons belong to the same village Mari Megha, which is located close to the international border, he said while adding that Pak-based smugglers were using drones to drop the arms and narcotics consignments.
The CP said that based on disclosures, arrested accused Joban Singh’s associates— Jashanpreet Singh and a juvenile— were nominated apprehended with seven pistols. On sustained interrogation of Joban Singh, he revealed details about concealed 1.5 kg heroin consignment, which was recovered from the location pinpointed by him, he added.
In this regard, a case FIR No. 269 dated 28-09-2025 has been registered under section 25 of the Arms Act and sections 21-C and 29 of the NDPS Act at Police Station Gate Hakima in Amritsar.
