Excelsior Correspondent
JAMMU, June 7: Jammu Police have achieved a big success when it busted international racket of narcotics smugglers and arrested five narco smugglers including two hailing from Kerala and recovered 10 kilograms heroin and 10 kilograms brown sugar valued at about Rs 75 crores in the international market from their possession.
The consignment had been smuggled from Pakistan occupied Kashmir (PoK) and the smugglers had collected it from Tanghdar along the Line of Control (LoC) in Kupwara sector of Kashmir. They were taking the consignment to New Delhi for further transporting it in the international market.
IG Jammu Zone, Danesh Rana told a news conference this afternoon that five narcotics smugglers-two each belonging to Kerala and Kupwara and one from Amritsar, Punjab, presently putting up in Jammu, had been smuggling the consignment in a case towards New Delhi when the cops intercepted the car and seized the entire consignment.
All five smugglers were arrested from Santro car No. 5905 JK03B, in which they were travelling, he said.
Pointing towards international ramification of the racket, Rana said police was investigation all angles involved in the racket after registration of First Information Report (FIR) No. 104/2016 under Section 8/21 NDPS Act at Trikuta Nagar police station.
In addition to 10 kilograms each heroin and brown sugar, the cops also recovered Rs 11.44 lakh cash from the accused.
“All aspects of the case were under investigations. Whether the accused were also involved in smuggling of weapons will also be investigated,” the Jammu Police chief said in response to a question.
Reports said a team of Special Operations Group (SOG) Jammu headed by SP Operations Nassir Ahmad, joined by the police personnel, had laid a naka at Narwal under the jurisdiction of Trikuta Nagar police station last night on the basis of specific information and intercepted the Santro car.
It arrested all five narcotics smugglers from the car and seized the consignment of heroin, brown sugar and cash.
The arrested narcotics smugglers have been identified as Shafiq Ahmed son of Fateh Joo R/o Dilwar, Tanghdar, Kupwara, Abdul Manan son of Mohammad Yousuf R/o Tanghdar, Kupwara, Jithin PC son of Chandran R/o Mundapotty Mallapuram, Kerala, Nizam-ud-Din son of Saker Hussain R/o Kunnumalpotty, Kerala and Surjeet Singh son of Harnam Singh R/o Kamoke Beas, Amritsar, Punjab, presently putting up at Deoli, Bishnah.
During sustained interrogation, the narcotics smugglers were reported to have disclosed that they had received the narcotics consignment near the LoC in Tanghdar sector of Kupwara district a day before and were heading towards New Delhi. They fell into the SOG and police naka at Narwal.
Sources said the consignment had come from Pakistan occupied Kashmir (PoK) and, therefore, police was investigating whether the accused were also involved in smuggling of weapons, though presently there was no report to this effect.
There were reports that the accused had to sell the consignment to international market through some conduits. They were being quizzed to ascertain names of the conduits to whom they had to hand over the consignment and the persons, who handed over narcotics to them at Tanghdar.
They said a major international racket could be cracked after disclosures of the accused as their interrogation was still at preliminary stage.
Meanwhile, in response to another question, the IGP Jammu said there had been inputs that the militants could target upcoming annual Amarnath ji pilgrimage, starting on July 2.
However, he added, police have tightened security along the National Highway, border and other vulnerable places to thwart any plot by the militants to target the pilgrimage.
Follow our WhatsApp channel
