ISI-backed module busted in Punjab, cache of weapons & heroin seized

Chandigarh, Oct 4 (IANS) With the Punjab Police having further intensified vigil and alertness against anti-social elements ahead of the festival season, Amritsar Rural Police has busted an ISI-backed narco-terrorism module with seizure of a cache of weapons and 2 kg heroin.

Its main operative has been arrested after recovering arms and explosives from his possession, Director General of Police Gaurav Yadav SAID here on Tuesday.

The module is being jointly operated by Canada-based Lakhbir Singh, alias Landa, Pakistan-based Harvinder Singh Rinda and Italy-based Harpreet Singh, alias Happy.

The arrested accused has been identified as Yograj Singh, alias Yog, a resident of Rajoke village in Tarn Taran district. The police have also identified five more accomplices, who were part of the module in carrying out illegal activities across Punjab and adjoining states.

The police have recovered one RDX-loaded tiffin box fabricated into an improvised explosive device (IED) or tiffin bomb; two sophisticated AK-56 assault rifles along with two magazines and 30 cartridges; one .30 bore pistol along with six cartridges; and 2 kg heroin from the accused.

DGP Yadav said the arrested accused is the main operative of this module and wanted by the state police and central agencies in at least five criminal cases, including the one wherein five AK-47 assault rifles were seized in Tarn Taran in September 2019.

He said preliminary investigations have revealed that the cross-border operations of arms-explosives-drugs smuggling was mainly handled by Yograj on the directions of terrorists Landa, Rinda and Happy and jailed smuggler Gurpavitar, alias Sai of Lakhna in Tarn Taran district.

Yograj had been active in recovery and further delivery of consignments of arms and drugs at a large scale, he added.

Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) Amritsar Rural Swapan Sharma said the Police have made a major strike in exposing the members of Landa-Rinda terror module.

In the present module, the police have managed to identify five operatives of the gang and a manhunt has been launched to nab them, he added.