CHANDIGARH: A cache of arms including two AK-47 rifles with 16 live cartridges, two magazines, and two P-86 (high explosive) hand grenades, was found on Tuesday in the forests of Gurdaspur district in Punjab.
The consignment is believed to have been meant for associates of Babbar Khalsa International (BKI), as the Punjab Police foiled a major terror plot allegedly orchestrated by Pakistan-based terrorist Harwinder Rinda.
Acting on intelligence inputs, the Anti-Gangster Task Force (AGTF) of Punjab Police seized the weapons from a forested area before they could be used in planned attacks.
Director General of Police, Punjab, Gaurav Yadav, wrote on X, “In an intelligence-led operation, the Anti-Gangster Task Force (#AGTF), Punjab successfully foiled a major terror plot orchestrated by Harwinder Rinda, a Babbar Khalsa International (BKI) operative based in #Pakistan and backed by Pakistan's ISI.”
He further stated, “Preliminary investigation reveals the recovered consignment was pushed into India by Pakistani agencies and Harwinder @ Rinda as part of a premeditated plan to carry out attacks at multiple locations in Punjab, aiming to disrupt public peace.”
“Acting swiftly on human intelligence, AGTF teams traced and recovered a large cache of terrorist hardware, including two AK-47 rifles with 16 live cartridges, two magazines, and two P-86 (high explosive) hand grenades from a forest area in Gurdaspur, before it could reach Harwinder Rinda's associates,” he added.
A case has been registered under the Explosives Act and the Arms Act at the Purana Shala police station in Gurdaspur.
Further investigations are underway to identify and apprehend Rinda's operatives linked to the recovered weapon consignment.