Pak-linked drug racket busted in J-K; 6 arrested, 5 kg heroin seized   

Police on Thursday claimed to have busted a cross-border narcotics racket by arresting six people and seizing nearly 5 kg of heroin along with three pistols here, officials said.

The value of the seized drug is more than Rs 30 crore in the international market, they said.

“A major narcotics racket has been busted in Jammu. Six members have been arrested. Four of them have been sent to judicial custody. As many as 4.95 kilograms of heroin was seized from them. Besides, three pistols were also seized,” Superintendent of Police Ajay Sharma told reporters here.

Asserting that the accused were linked across the border as part of narco-terrorism, the SP said “when we checked their digital footprints, we came to know that they were connected across the border with Pakistani handlers supplying narcotics and drugs to destroy the next generation of this country”.

Sharma said they wanted to carry forward an unconventional war against the country. “We have invoked relevant sections of the UAPA also. This is a clear case of narco-terrorism, which the Jammu Police South Zone has successfully intercepted.”

A case has been registered at Gandhi Nagar police station under the NDPS Act.

During investigation, Karan Sharma of Jourian and Nikhlesh Verma of Udhampur were arrested and 3.26 kg of heroin was seized, the SP said.

Later, police arrested Mohammad Yousef in Narwal (Jammu), financial handler Gulshan Kumar of Rajouri, and Jasvinder Kumar of Nowshera, and seized more heroin from them, he said.

The SP said Gulshan's vehicle was seized and found to be modified with cavities to smuggle narcotics. “Jasvinder was already in custody in another narcotics case,” he added.

Further probe in the case led to the arrest of Shamdin of Nikki Tawi (Jammu), from whose house a pistol, live rounds, and 619 grams of heroin were seized, he said, adding that another accused, Abdul Hamid of Maraliya in RS Pura, is absconding.

“From his house, police have seized two pistols, including an automatic pistol, along with ammunition,” he said.

Most of the members of the racket were from areas close to the Indo-Pak border in Jammu, police said.