Drug peddler nabbed after brief encounter

Tribune News Service

Charanjit Singh Teja

Amritsar, August 29

A team of the Special Task Force (STF) from Jalandhar arrested a drug smuggler after a brief encounter with him in Rayya area here on Monday night. The accused has been identified as Partap Singh of Dunyal village in Rayya area. In an exchange of fire, the drug smuggler got injured and was admitted to Guru Nanak Dev hospital. The police recovered a pistol, six cartridges and 350-gm heroin from his possession.

On a secret tip-off, a STF team raided drug trafficker Partap Singh at Dunyal village near Rayya. The police arranged for a buyer of the drug, who made a call to Partap Singh and demanded heroin. Partap Singh fixed time and the spot for the delivery of the contraband. When Partap reached to give drugs, the STF cops surrounded him and asked to surrender.

The accused reportedly fired a gunshot at STF team members with his pistol. In exchange of fire, the accused received a bullet on the leg and fell down. The cops nabbed him and recovered a pistol, six cartridges and 350 gm of heroin.

A team of officials of the Baba Bakala police station also reached the spot and admitted the accused to Government Hospital at Baba Bakala. The doctors further referred him to Guru Nanak Dev hospital.

The accused confessed that he was involved in the drug trade for the last few months and had only four customers. The accused used to get drugs from Amritsar. He used to connect with drug dealers on WhatsApp and collect the drug from the given location from some courier.

The accused claimed that the recovered .32 bore pistol was a licensed weapon, which was issued to his maternal grandfather. Even after the death of his grandfather, the accused did not surrender the pistol and licence to the government and used it illegally.

Partap Singh claimed that he had some rivalry in the village so he kept a pistol with him. The STF has registered a case at the STF police station and initiated investigation to trace his linkages. Police officials are hopeful that they will get more links from the accused who sell the drug in the area.

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