10 men held last year to be quizzed

Two days after a major weapon haul in the district in which at least 40 pistols (almost all of foreign make) and their cartridges were recovered, Punjab Police will interrogate 10 persons arrested in November 2020, as part of its investigation. At the time, seven pistols were recovered from these accused, some of whom are in jails and would be brought on a production warrant.

On Thursday, Jagjit Singh, alias Jaggu, of Purian Kalan village in Batala was arrested. Preliminary investigation suggests that all weapons were smuggled from Pakistan. Police say Jaggu has links with Pakistan-based terror outfits and pro-khalistani elements based in the US, Canada and the UK. They also claimed that Jaggu was operating at the behest of his Us-based handler Darmanjit, alias Darman Kahlon, a former gangster.

Kahlon’s name had also cropped up in November 2020, when the State Special Operation Cell (SSOC) had arrested 10 people in Amritsar in connection with the recovery of seven pistols that were allegedly smuggled from Madhya Pradesh (MP). The investigation into this case had found that Kahlon had given Rs 1.5 lakh for the smuggling of weapons.

“We will question all 10 accused arrested in the 2020 case,” said ADGP (internal security) RN Dhoke, adding that it was unclear as to how much funding Kahlon had given in the Thursday night seizure case. He added that their teams were also working to ascertain the identity of banned and pro-khalistani organisations in the US, Canada, the UK and Pakistan. “Most weapons are foreign-made and the possibility of their being smuggled from Pakistan can’t be ruled out,” the AGDP added.

Kahlon had fled to the US after accusations emerged that he had orchestrated the escape of a notorious gangster, Harwinder Singh, alias Manu, in 2017. Police are now working to ensure his extradition. Police added that Jaggu came in contact with Kahlon during his stay in Dubai from 2017 to 2020.