In a multi-State clampdown against Khalistanis and the terrorists-gangsters-drug smugglers syndicate, the National Investigation Agency (NIA) on Wednesday conducted synchronised raids in several places and detained a number of suspects linked to Canada-based “listed terrorist” Arsh Dalla and his cohorts, including dreaded gangsters. Dalla is operating his cartel through a network of gangsters in India.
A total of 53 locations were raided during the day-long operation, which started early on Wednesday. State Police forces provided the necessary support and assistance in the raids.
The search operation spanned the six States of Punjab, Delhi, Haryana, Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan, Uttarakhand and the Union Territory of Chandigarh.
During the raids, the NIA seized pistols, ammunition, large numbers of digital devices and incriminating materials.
Besides Arsh Dalla, others covered in the NIA raids are notorious gangsters Lawrence Bishnoi, Sukha Duneke, Harry Maur, Narender alias Lali, Kala Jatheri and Deepak Tinu among others.
The searches follow a recent intelligence input against gangster Lawrence Bishnoi, a criminal mastermind with a notorious track record, who has been linked to several high-profile crimes, including the murder of renowned Punjabi singer Sidhu Moosewala and threats issued against Bollywood actors Salman Khan, officials said.
Recent intelligence inputs suggest an alarming development in Bishnoi’s illicit activities suggesting he has established a direct line of communication with Nasir Khan, an operative of Pakistan Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI).
“The connection suggests that Bishnoi and his gang might be diversifying their criminal portfolio by procuring weapons with the help of Pakistan Intelligence Operatives (PIOs) and making use of these weapons for furthering gangster activities in the region,” reads the Intelligence report.
Bishnoi’s gang is notorious for involvement in extortion and killings but the recent revelation of links with Pakistan-based entities suggests a “strategic shift in the gang’s operational focus.”
“The gang’s involvement in arms smuggling represents a significant escalation in their criminal activities and poses a considerable risk to the nation’s security. The potential backing by Pakistan ISI operatives also indicates a concerning overlap between organised crimes and geopolitical adversaries, enhancing the threat profile of Bishnoi’s operations,” the report warned.
The latest round of searches were the seventh in the series of such crackdowns launched by NIA following the registration of five cases since August 2022, including the two new cases registered against Organised Criminal Gangs in July 2023. The cases relate to conspiracies of targeted killings, terror funding of pro-Khalistan outfits and extortion by the gangsters, many of whom are lodged in various jails or are operating from various foreign countries, including Canada, Pakistan, Malaysia, Portugal and Australia and the United States among others, officials said.
“The focus of today’s raids, aimed at dismantling the terror-gangster-drug smuggler nexus, was on weapon suppliers, financiers and logistics providers associated with various hardcore gangs and their operatives. These gangs are working with drug smugglers and terrorists based out of other countries, including Pakistan, the UAE, Canada, Portugal, etc,” the NIA said in a statement.
NIA investigations so far have revealed that the conspiracies under investigation were being hatched in jails of different States and were being executed by an organised network of operatives based abroad. Notable among such conspiracies were the sensational killing of Maharashtra builder Sanjay Biyani, mining trader Mehal Singh and international Kabaddi player Sandeep Nangal Ambia in Punjab last year.
Many of the criminals and gangsters who were earlier leading gangs in India have fled abroad in recent years and are now pursuing their terror and violence related activities from there, the NIA probe has unraveled.
“These criminals have been engaged in planning and commissioning serious crimes, including contract and revenge killings, in association with criminals lodged in jails across India. These groups have been carrying out targeted killings and raising funds for attacks and other nefarious activities through smuggling of drugs and weapons, hawala and extortions,” the agency further said.
The spotlight on these gangs has become sharper after reports of several prisons becoming havens of the deadly nexus and hubs of gang wars, which recently resulted in violence and murder inside Goindwal jail in Punjab.
Some of the locations where raids were conducted during the day included: Amritsar, Moga, Fazilka, Ludhiana, Mohali, Faridkot, Barnala, Bhatinda, Ferozepur, SAS Nagar, Amritsar and Jalandhar districts of Punjab.
In Haryana, the searches were conducted in Rohtak, Sirsa, Fatehabad and Faridabad districts. Likewise, Sri Ganga Nagar, Jhunjhunu, Hanumangarh and Jodhpur districts of Rajasthan were covered in the search operation. Gorakhpur in Uttar Pradesh, Dehradun and Udhamsingh Nagar districts of Uttarakhand besides the South-east district of Delhi/ NCR (National Capital Region) and Chandigarh were also part of the coordinated action against the Khalistani terrorists and the terrorist-gangsters-drug cartel.
NIA had earlier conducted similar raids at over 370 locations, leading to seizure of 38 arms, including four lethal weapons, along with 1,129 rounds of ammunition.
Till now, the NIA has frozen 87 bank accounts and attached 13 properties, besides seizing 331 digital devices, 418 documents and two vehicles.
Two absconders have been declared as designated individual terrorists, and 15 accused declared as Proclaimed Offenders and Interpol Red Corner Notices (RCNs) issued against nine others as a result of NIA’s concerted efforts to destroy and dismantle the deadly nexus between terrorists like Dalla and dreaded gangsters and drug smugglers. Further investigations are on to dismantle such terror, violence and extortion networks as well as their funding and support infrastructure, the agency added.
