2 held with weapons smuggled from Pak

Tribune News Service

Amritsar, February 5

Acting on a tip-off, the State Special Operation Cell (SSOC) arrested two associates of Amritpal Singh, alias Amrit Bal, of the US with two pistols and 11 bullets, which were allegedly smuggled from Pakistan.

Originally hailing from Bholath in Kapurthala district, Amrit Bal was allegedly involved in anti-national activities and trying to vitiate peace and harmony in Punjab, the police said.

Associates of us-based anti-national

• The two associates of Amritpal Singh, alias Amrit Bal, have been identified as Sandeep Singh of Batala and Avtar Singh of Gurdaspur
• They came in contact with Amrit Bal through social media. He recruited them to carry out criminal activities in Punjab
• The police said Bal had recruited several persons for carrying out targeted killings and other anti-national activities. Further probe is on

Those arrested have been identified as Sandeep Singh of Nangal village in Batala and Avtar Singh of Jogi Cheema village in Gurdaspur. They were roaming in the Vallah area here on a bike when they were intercepted by an SSOC team yesterday. During the search, the police recovered two .32 bore pistols, 11 bullets and a motorcycle from their possession. A case has been registered under Sections 120 and 120-B of the IPC and Section 25 of the Arms Act.

According to the police, the duo has a criminal background. Avtar has six criminal cases registered against him, including that of murder, snatching and theft, and Sandeep was involved in a robbery case. They came in contact with Amrit Bal through social media. He recruited them to carry out criminal activities in different parts of Punjab.

The police said Bal had recruited several persons for carrying out targeted killings and other anti-national activities. Further investigation is under way.

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