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Punjab Police busted a Pakistan-backed international drug smuggling cartel operating in the state with the arrest of two key traffickers and the recovery of 12.1 kilograms of heroin.
The breakthrough came after a two-week-long, source-based operation by Faridkot Police under the ongoing "Yudh Nashian Virudh" campaign initiated on the directions of Chief Minister Bhagwant Singh Mann. Director General of Police (DGP) Punjab, Gaurav Yadav, on Tuesday said that the arrested traffickers were part of a larger cross-border network and had direct links with Pakistan-based smugglers. The consignment seized was smuggled across the international border and recovered from Village Jhariwala, under the jurisdiction of Sadar Faridkot Police Station. The accused have been identified as Sukhpreet Singh, a resident of Jhariwala village in Faridkot, and Kadar Singh, a resident of Waan village in Ferozepur. "Preliminary investigation points to a wider transnational smuggling network. A detailed probe is underway to establish forward and backwards linkages," DGP Yadav said, adding that the nexus is being mapped to trace all those involved. Providing details of the operation, Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) Faridkot, Pragya Jain, said that acting on credible intelligence about a planned drug delivery, joint police teams from Sadar Faridkot Police Station and Golewala Police Post, under the supervision of SP (Investigation) Sandeep Kumar and DSP Tarlochan Singh, intercepted the accused. The arrests were made near the residence of Sukhpreet Singh in Jhariwala when the duo was about to deliver the heroin consignment. The SSP revealed that Pakistan-based smugglers have increasingly been relying on drones to transport large heroin consignments into Indian territory. Once dropped across the border, these consignments were distributed further inside Punjab through traffickers like the arrested accused. "Further investigation is underway to identify other individuals linked with the Pakistan-based handlers. Raids are being carried out to nab more suspects, and additional recoveries are expected in the coming days," Jain said. In this connection, an FIR (No. 212 dated 08.09.2025) has been registered under Sections 21 and 23 of the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act at Sadar Faridkot Police Station. (ANI)
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