Ahmedabad, February 26 The Gujarat Anti-Terrorist Squad (ATS) has apprehended a man who was wanted in connection with a case involving the cross-border smuggling of heroin, as well as grenades and pistols, in Punjab, officials said on Thursday.
The ATS identified him as Rehmat Ali Sheikh, a resident of Amritsar in the northern state.
He was wanted in connection with the transportation of consignments of heroin, hand grenades, and pistols from the Punjab-Pakistan border and delivering them to other individuals in that state in January this year, the ATS said in a statement.
A case was registered against him at the Rajasansi police station in Amritsar district on January 29 under sections 21 and 25 of the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act, as well as sections 3, 4, and 5 of the Explosive Substances Act, it said.
Two accused were arrested in the case, and 42.9 kilograms of heroin, four hand grenades, one Star-mark pistol, and 46 live cartridges were seized, the statement said.
However, Sheikh had absconded, first going to Nepal and then to Bihar before reaching Gujarat, where he started working at an embroidery factory, it said.
"ATS officials apprehended him from an embroidery factory in Rakhial in Ahmedabad. During the initial interrogation, it was revealed that the accused is part of a major narcotics as well as grenade-pistol smuggling network," it said.
The Gujarat ATS has shared information regarding his detention with the Punjab police, and further legal proceedings have been initiated for his handover, the statement said.