Chandigarh, Feb 11 (IANS) In an intelligence-led operation, Punjab Police’s Special Operations Cell of Amritsar have busted yet another Pakistan-backed terror module and foiled major terror plot with the arrest of an accused and recovery an an improvised explosive device (IED) packed in metallic case with remote control and a foreign-made pistol along with ammunition from his possession, Director General of Police Gaurav Yadav said on Wednesday.
The accused has been identified as Shubham Kumar, alias Shubham Srivastav, a resident of Sarosa village in Uttar Pradesh’s Sitapur.
The development comes a day after Punjab Police busted Pakistan’s ISI-backed terror module with the arrest of its operative, Rahul Kumar, alias Gaju, of Amritsar, and recovered an RDX-based IED from his possession.
DGP Yadav said that the preliminary probe has indicated that the arrested accused was in contact with a Pakistan-based handler through encrypted platforms. The terror consignment had been pushed from across the border and retrieved from a designated location on the city outskirts, he said.
“The IED was intended for targeted attacks in multiple states, including Punjab and Delhi,” Yadav said, while adding that further investigation is underway to dismantle the entire terror network.
Sharing operational details, Assistant Inspector General, Amritsar, Sukhminder Singh Mann said that police teams had received specific information that a consignment comprising IED and weapons had pushed from Pakistan through a drone by Pakistan operatives, and had been retrieved by their Indian associates to carry out blasts and terrorist activities in Punjab, Delhi and various parts of the country.
Acting swiftly, special police teams were constituted, and an operation was launched, leading to the arrest of suspect Shubham Kumar and recovery of an IED and one pistol from the abandoned area near a dargarh situated on the Amritsar-Jalandhar GT Road. The AIG said that the probe has revealed that the arrested accused is highly radicalised and came from Uttar Pradesh to Amritsar after his handler promised a lucrative amount. The accused retrieved the consignment comprising IED and weapons from a designated location on the outskirts of the city on the instructions of his handler, he said, adding that further investigation is ongoing.
–IANS
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