Sharpshooter of Bhupi Rana gang held in Mohali
Shooter Ankit Rana is kingpin of extortion rackets in Punjab and Haryana; was wanted in several criminal cases, including Baltana encounter
MOHALI : In a major breakthrough, Punjab Police’s Antigangster Task Force (AGTF) in coordination with the Mohali police personnel arrested Ankit Rana, a sharpshooter of the Bhupi Rana gang, on Saturday afternoon.
“Ankit Rana is one of the main kingpins of extortion rackets in Punjab and Haryana. He was wanted in several criminal cases, including the Baltana encounter,” Punjab director general of police (DGP) Gaurav Yadav tweeted.
Police also recovered one .32-bore pistol, along with five live cartridges from him.
Ankit is a cousin of gangster Bhupi Rana, who is lodged in Patiala jail and was the main conspirator in the August 2021 murder of Youth Akali Dal leader Vikramjit Singh Middukhera in Mohali.
Three accomplices of Bhupi were arrested in Zirakpur’s Baltana area in July for extorting up to ₹50,000 every month from local hoteliers following a late-night encounter, police said, adding they were working at the behest of Ankit.
In the shootout, one of the three gangsters had suffered a gunshot wound on the leg and two Punjab Police officials had also sustained injuries.
DGP Yadav said the AGTF in a joint operation with a team of Mohali police, led by DSP Bikramjeet Singh Brar, succeeded in arresting gangster Ankit with a .32-bore pistol and five cartridges.
The DGP said Ankit was also wanted in several attempt to murder and Arms Act cases registered in Haryana and Punjab.
“He was involved in extorting money from 15 hotels in Zirakpur and 10 hotels in Panchkula, besides other renowned businessmen,” he added.
Gangster Pavitar Singh’s aid caught with 4 pistols in Rupnagar
PATIALA : Bharat Bhushan Pammi, an accomplice of fugitive gangster Pavitar Singh, was caught with four pistols and 34 cartridges in Rupnagar, police said on Saturday.
Senior superintendent of police Vivek S Soni said that Pammi, a resident of ward number 6 in Mandi Ahmedgarh town of Malerkotla district, was arrested for smuggling drugs and weapons.
Pavitar Singh, who belongs to Chauda village in Gurdaspur district, is now based in California in the US.
The SSP said three .32-bore pistols, an imported pistol (Colt Government 1911 A1, cal 9 mm P.A.K) and 34 cartridges were recovered from Pammi.
A case was registered under the Arms Act at the Rupnagar city police station.
He said he was already booked in two cases under the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act in Mandi Ahmedgarh and Ludhiana.