Amritsar (Punjab) [India], January 22 : The Punjab Police have busted a major weapons-smuggling racket, arresting two key suspects, Gurpreet Gopi and Biki Wind, with ties to Pakistan-based smugglers under Operation Prahar.
Six sophisticated weapons, including 9mm Glocks and .304 caliber pistols, were seized by the Amritsar Police on Wednesday.
The operation, part of Punjab's anti-crime initiative, was hailed a success by Police Commissioner Gurpreet Singh Bhullar.
"Our Chief Minister's zero-tolerance policy against organised crime and Operation Prahaar, which was launched yesterday across Punjab, has yielded a major success for the Commissioner of Police, Amritsar," said Bhullar.
"If we go back to the background, the basic sustenance of organised crime is weaponry. We, as a police force, have previously gained a significant upper hand in this matter, and we will continue to do so. Under the "Zero tolerance policy, strict action is going all across the state, especially in Amritsar. Yesterday, we arrested 116 organised criminals, and the proceedings are still ongoing," added Police Commissioner Gurpreet Singh Bhullar.
Operation Prahar is a massive, statewide crackdown launched by the Punjab Police to dismantle organised crime and gangster networks.
"The entire network involved in smuggling weapons across the international border has been dismantled. Two main accused have been arrested: Gurpreet Gopi, a resident of Khemkaran, Tarn Taran, and Biki Wind, also from Tarn Taran. Six sophisticated and lethal weapons have been recovered, including two 9mm Glocks and four .304 caliber pistols. These two individuals were in contact with Pakistan-based smugglers via social media and received instructions from abroad regarding the consignments. They were about to receive further instructions when our police team successfully finalised a brilliant intelligence-based operation, dismantling the entire network in one go...," said Bhullar.
A 72-hour intensive drive involving over 12,000 police personnel organised into 2,000 special teams. Raids were focused on locations linked to 60 foreign-based gangsters and their local associates across Punjab.