CHANDIGARH: In two separate operations, Punjab Police have busted a cross-border drug cartel and a narco-terror module, recovering 9.2 kg of heroin. Among those arrested is a woman kingpin who allegedly posed as a police officer to carry out smuggling operations.
The Amritsar Commissionerate Police dismantled the cross-border drug cartel with the arrest of Mandeep Kaur (27) of Ibban Kalan village in Amritsar, along with three operatives. The police seized 5.2 kg of heroin from their possession.
Director General of Police, Punjab, Gaurav Yadav, said that the other arrested individuals have been identified as Alam Arora (23) and Manmeet, alias Golu (21), both residents of Janta Colony in Chheharta, Amritsar, along with an 18-year-old boy from Tarn Taran, whose name has been withheld.
“Preliminary investigations have revealed that accused Mandeep Kaur was in a relationship with a person who introduced her to Pakistan-based smugglers. The accused Mandeep’s ancestral house is located in the border village of Khalra in Tarn Taran, which is approximately two kilometres from the Indo-Pak border fence,” Yadav said.
He further stated, “The probe has also provided evidence that the accused Mandeep would occasionally don a police uniform to impersonate an officer and carry out her nefarious activities. Further investigations are ongoing to establish backward and forward linkages in this case.”
Providing details of the operation, Commissioner of Police, Amritsar, Gurpreet Singh Bhullar, said that police teams, acting on reliable inputs, apprehended Mandeep Kaur and her two operatives, Alam and Manmeet, from the Chheharta area of Amritsar. Later, based on Kaur’s revelations, another individual was arrested from the same area.
A case has been registered under Sections 21(C), 21(B), and 29 of the NDPS Act at Chheharta Police Station in Amritsar.
Meanwhile, in another operation, Counter Intelligence, Amritsar, busted a narco-terror module operating in Punjab with the arrest of four individuals and the recovery of 4 kg of heroin.
Yadav said those arrested have been identified as Sukhwinder Singh and his son Navjot Singh, both residents of Tarn Taran Road in Amritsar; Aniket, a resident of Chheharta in Amritsar; and Gurpreet Singh, alias Gopi, a resident of Sheron village in Tarn Taran. Police also seized a black three-wheeler auto and a black Hero Deluxe motorcycle used for transporting drug consignments.
"Counter Intelligence, Amritsar, received reliable inputs that some individuals, in direct contact with Pakistan-based drug smugglers, were involved in drug trafficking and had recently retrieved a heroin consignment from the Attari area for local distribution. Acting swiftly, police teams from CI Amritsar conducted a raid near Government Hospital in Naraingarh, Amritsar, arresting the four accused and seizing 4 kg of heroin," Yadav said.
Preliminary investigations revealed that the gang is managed by an individual based abroad, identified as Bhullar. The probe further indicated that Sukhwinder and his son Navjot Singh had received a 4 kg heroin consignment from an unknown person in Rajatal village, Amritsar. Of this, they distributed 2 kg to Aniket and Gurpreet Singh for further supply.
Notably, Sukhwinder Singh’s other son, Harmanjit Singh, alias Harry, and Aniket’s brother, Sagar, were recently arrested in a drug-related case by the ANTF SAS Nagar in January this year and are currently lodged in Amritsar Jail.
“Their involvement in this smuggling network is also under investigation. Further probe is underway to establish deeper connections within this network by identifying backward and forward linkages,” Yadav said, adding that more arrests and recoveries are expected in the coming days.
A case has been registered under Sections 21, 25, and 29 of the NDPS Act at the State Special Operations Cell (SSOC) Police Station, Amritsar.