Member of Bishnoi gang held after encounter, arms seized

Tribune News Service

Karnal, October 1

A team of the Special Task Force (STF), Ambala unit, arrested a member of the Lawrence Bishnoi gang and Babbar Khalsa group after a brief encounter near Karnal Sugar Mill on the Meerut road here today.

The team members seized four foreign-made pistols and 10 live cartridges, which the police believed had come from Pakistan via drone.

The accused has been identified as Mukesh Jamba of Jamba village in Karnal district. He was also a main supplier of firearms to Ankush Kamalpur gang, said Sumit Kumar, Superintendent of Police (SP), STF, Ambala unit.

Tip-off by Punjab Police

We got information from the Punjab Police that Mukesh had come to Tarn Taran to receive a consignment of weapons from Parminder Singh. Rounded up, Mukesh opened fire on the police, which retaliated. The accused was later arrested. —Sumit Kumar, SP of the ambala unit STT

“We got information from the Punjab Police after the arrest of Parminder Singh (alias Pindi) that Mukesh had come to Tarn Taran to receive a consignment of weapons from Pindi. These weapons were dropped in Tarn Taran area using drones by operatives from across the border. Later, STF DSP Aman Kumar and Inspector Deepender Singh, along with some team members, rounded up Mukesh, who opened fire on the police team. The police retaliated and the accused was later arrested,” the SP added.

Nine cases of loot, attempt to murder, extortion, snatching and other offences were already registered against him in Haryana and Punjab. Now, a fresh case under Section 307 of the IPC and various sections of the Arms Act has been registered against him, said the SP. He had been absconding in a case registered in Punjab related to a terror module.

He would be produced in a court on Sunday. The police would seek his remand to determine the whereabouts of other gang members.

The police said the accused also wanted to flee abroad. The weapons seized from him were semi-automatic, it added.

“In the preliminary investigation, the accused confessed that he is linked with the Babbar Khalsa, Lawrence Bishnoi and Ankush Kamalpur gangs. These weapons were provided to him by gangsters Damanjot Singh (alias Kahlon) and Virender Sambhi through Pakistan-based Harvinder Singh (alias Rinda), who allegedly runs a terror module,” the SP maintained.

During the investigation, it also came to the fore that he wanted to kill gangster Neeraj Punia’s brother Brijpal of Karnal and Prahladh Katwa of Abhor at the behest of gangsters and terrorists. He was even being funded by gangster Virender Sambhi for anti-national activities, the SP said.

“We have also informed the Karnal police about his motive, so that necessary measures can be taken,” he added.

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