Close aide of gangster Afridi held with five pistols & ammunition

Lamba said a case under the Arms Act has been registered against Ranjit Singh, Sukhwant Singh, and Afridi at the Sarhali police station. (File)

The Tarn Taran Police have arrested one of the close associates of notorious gangster Gurvinder Singh, alias Afridi, and recovered a massive cache of weapons, including five pistols and live cartridges. This comes just a day after Afridi was successfully deported from Ethiopia to India.

Afridi — carrying a reward of five lakh rupees and wanted in over 34 heinous cases, including murder, attempt to murder, extortion, and firing incidents — was brought back to India following a meticulous 10-month overseas tracking operation coordinated by central agencies and the AGTF’s overseas tracking cell. He was recently presented before the court of Judicial Magistrate Manak Kauda in Patti. He was remanded in police custody until November 17 in connection with the murder of Sarpanch Rajwinder Singh Raj Talwandi.

During the court proceedings, Afridi’s defense counsel Amritpal Singh Buttar expressed serious apprehensions regarding potential physical torture or a staged encounter, demanding that questioning strictly adhere to legal protocols.

The Tarn Taran Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP), Surinder Lamba, said that they received confidential intelligence regarding illegal weapons being stockpiled for anti-social activities. The SSP said that a police team led by ASI Baljinder Singh set up a checkpoint near Adda Thatthia Mahantan. They intercepted Ranjit Singh, alias Rana, a resident of Bhojeke and one of Afridi’s trusted operatives.

The police official said Ranjit and his associate Sukhwant Singh, alias Sattu, were responsible for managing and distributing illegal weapons smuggled from Pakistan by Afridi to fuel extortion threats and targeted shootings across the region.

The team seized an extensive arsenal: one 9mm pistol with a magazine, one Glock 9mm pistol with a magazine, one Pietro Beretta 30-bore pistol with a magazine, one Beretta 30-bore pistol with a magazine, an additional 30-bore pistol with a magazine, alongside 12 rounds of 30-bore and 118 rounds of 9mm ammunition.

Lamba said a case under the Arms Act has been registered against Ranjit Singh, Sukhwant Singh, and Afridi at the Sarhali police station.

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Kamaldeep Singh Brar is a Principal Correspondent at The Indian Express, primarily covering Amritsar... Read More