The investigation into the recovery of two hand grenades and three sophisticated weapons from four suspects — two from Amritsar district and two from Phillaur — has revealed that the explosives were suspected to have been dropped by drones flown in from Pakistan, according to police officials.
International Coordination
Handlers based in foreign countries facilitated the deliveries by coordinating with their counterparts in Pakistan. The probe by the Ludhiana Police Commissionerate and Counter Intelligence also uncovered that the explosives and weapons were manufactured in China. They are believed to have reached Pakistan before being diverted to Punjab.
Previous Arrests
On May 17, a targeted shooting conspiracy was thwarted with the arrest of two operatives, Anuraj and Ankush, along with the recovery of three sophisticated pistols and 11 cartridges. Subsequently, on May 23, police teams traced the explosives wing of the module, leading to the arrest of Karandeep Singh and Baljeet Singh. Two military-grade hand grenades were seized.
A senior police official involved in the investigation stated that the four arrested suspects had been tasked with collecting weapons and explosives from specific locations in exchange for a few thousand rupees. “Questioning revealed that they were not even aware of who had dropped the hand grenades or weapons. They were just told to extract them from specific spots. Further instructions were yet to be received for delivery to another module, which would have been tasked with carrying out targeted shootings and lobbing of hand grenades at targets in Punjab,” the official added.
Foreign Handlers
The police official said the entire operation was being managed by foreign-based handlers: Zorawar Singh (Germany), Sahil Sondhi alias Chunj (Dubai), Lakha (Germany), and Akashdeep alias Golden (Malaysia), a resident of Khaira village, Tarn Taran. These handlers typically connect with youths on social media and convince them to join the module in exchange for money.
The police probe has also found that a youth lodged in Karnal (Haryana) jail was part of the nexus. He will be brought on production warrant for questioning.
