Punjab Police raid suspected hideouts of wanted terrorist Arsh Dalla

Chandigarh (Punjab) [India], January 7 (ANI): In a massive crackdown on the alleged gangster-terrorist nexus in the state, the Punjab Police on Saturday launched massive raids on suspected hideouts of persons linked with gangster-turned-terrorist Arshdeep Singh alias Arsh Dalla.
Simultaneous raids were conducted at the residential and other premises linked to Arsh Dalla, from Dalla village in Moga district, in all Punjab districts. The police said the operation is aimed at disrupting the nexus between terrorists, gangsters and drug smugglers in the country and abroad.
State Director General of Police (DGP) Gaurav Yadav said the searches were planned after the questioning of several persons in connection with the recently-busted modules backed by Arsh Dalla. The crackdown is also aimed at instilling fear among miscreants and restore a sense of safety and security among the common people, the police said, adding that the operation was conducted simultaneously in all the districts.
As many as 192 police teams searched the premises of at least 232 persons allegedly linked with Arsh Dalla.
Sharing details of the Cordon and Search Operation, the DGP said several persons were detained for further verification while incriminating material, seized from their possession, was being examined. Also, during the searches, data from electronic devices were collected, arms licences checked, sourcing of ammunition ascertained, and travel details of foreign-based family members collected, the police said, adding that bank transactions from abroad were looked into and property details collected.
According to the police, Canada-based Arshdeep Singh alias Arsh Dalla is a notorious gangster-turned-terrorist involved in various criminal activities in Punjab and abroad and is one of its most wanted names. He is an operative of the KTF, which is a banned terrorist organisation. In 2020, he fled to Canada after allegedly killing one of his associates, Sukkha Lamme.
Sitting in Canada, he allegedly runs a network of gangsters involved in extortion, killings and other terror crimes in Punjab. He has associates based out in Manila, Malaysia, Canada and Pakistan, it is further alleged.
There are as many as 35 FIRs pertaining to murder, looting, Dacoity, extortions, ransom and spreading terror registered against him. He is also alleged to be involved in several targeted killings in Punjab, apart from cases of smuggling combat hardware, including RDX, IEDs, AK-47 and other arms and ammunition, to 'terror' modules in the state after getting them imported or drone-dropped from Pakistan.
DGP Gaurav Yadav said the process is already on to extradite Arsh Dalla from Canada.
An Interpol Red Corner Notice against Arsh Dalla has already been issued and is being followed up vigorously, the DGP said. (ANI)