Punjab Police Busts Cross-Border Smuggling Networks, Recovers 1.01 kg Heroin, ₹45.19L Drug Money
In a major crackdown on drug networks amidst the ongoing anti-drug campaign ‘Yudh Nashian Virudh’, launched on the directions of Chief Minister Bhagwant Singh Mann, the Commissionerate Police Amritsar has busted two separate smuggling networks with the arrest of three individuals. Police recovered 1.01 kg of heroin, ₹45.19 lakh in drug money, and a cash-counting machine, Director General of Police (DGP) Punjab Gaurav Yadav said here on Saturday.
Those arrested were identified as Rahul Singh alias Kalu (20) of Thathi Sohal in Tarn Taran, Gurmukh Singh (21) of village Sudhar Rajputan in Amritsar, and Varinderpal Singh (32) of village Akalgarh Dhaphian in Amritsar.
DGP Gaurav Yadav said that two separate First Information Reports (FIRs) under the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act have been registered at Police Station Gate Hakima and Police Station Verka. "Further investigation is underway to trace forward and backward linkages to unearth the entire smuggling module," he said.
Sharing details of the first operation, Commissioner of Police (CP) Amritsar Gurpreet Singh Bhullar said police teams from CIA-2 arrested Rahul alias Kalu and recovered 510 grams of heroin and ₹30.18 lakh in drug money, along with a cash-counting machine, from his rented house at Anand Vihar in Amritsar.
He said preliminary investigations indicated that Rahul was in contact with a foreign-based drug smuggler, Tony German, and was supplying heroin locally after receiving consignments from across the border. In connection with this, FIR No. 117, dated May 16, 2025, has been registered under Sections 21(c) and 25 of the NDPS Act at Police Station Gate Hakima, Amritsar.
In another operation, the CP said police teams from Police Station Verka arrested Gurmukh Singh and Varinder Pal Singh, recovering 500 grams of heroin, ₹15.19 lakh in drug money, and a camera-fitted toy drone from their possession. "The accused had made a concealed compartment in a bed box, described as a secret locker, at a house in village Akalgarh, from where the drug money was recovered," Bhullar said, adding that the accused were using the toy drone for practice.
Further investigation is ongoing, and more arrests and recoveries are likely in the coming days. A case, FIR No. 40, dated May 14, 2025, has been registered under Sections 25 and 29 of the NDPS Act at Police Station Verka, Amritsar.
