Amritsar (Punjab) [India], August 2 (ANI): Counter-Intelligence (CI), Amritsar, has busted a cross-border illegal arms smuggling module with alleged links to Pakistan and arrested five operatives, recovering six sophisticated pistols from their possession, Punjab Director General of Police (DGP) Gaurav Yadav said on Friday.

According to a statement issued by the Department of Information and Public Relations, Punjab, those arrested have been identified as Jagroop Singh of Dhun (Tarn Taran), Navdeep Singh of Patti Lahian Di (Tarn Taran), Arshdeep Singh of Shaliwal (Amritsar), Gurlal Singh of Rajoke (Tarn Taran), and Joban Singh of Patti Mana Ki (Tarn Taran).

Jagroop Singh and Navdeep Singh are habitual offenders and have previous cases registered against them under the Arms Act and the NDPS Act, officials said.

The recovered arms include four 9mm Glock pistols and two .30 bore pistols, along with magazines and live cartridges.

DGP Yadav said preliminary investigations revealed that the accused were acting on the directions of a Pakistan-based smuggler identified as Rana, who was allegedly sending consignments of illegal weapons across the border.

The arrested accused were further supplying the arms to criminals and gangsters in Punjab, disturbing peace and harmony of the border state, he said.

The DGP said that teams of CI Amritsar received specific intelligence about the retrieval of weapon consignments from Indo-Pak border areas falling under the jurisdiction of the districts of Tarn Taran and Amritsar.

Acting swiftly, police teams have intercepted above five persons from near Bus Stop Panjwar, situated on Amritsar-Bhikhiwind Road, when they were waiting for gangsters, to whom the consignment was to be delivered further and recovered illegal weapons from their possession, he said.

He said that further investigations are underway to uncover the network's backwards and forward linkages.

A case under sections 25, 25(1)(A) and 25(1)(B) of the Arms Act and section 61(2) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) has been registered at Police Station State Special Operation Cell, Amritsar. (ANI)