Punjab police bust cross-border drug-arms network, seize 5.5 kg heroin and 2 pistols
Synopsis
Amritsar Police unravelled a cross-border supply chain — not just a street-level bust. With 5.557 kg of heroin and two Glock-class pistols seized, and two accused living steps from the International Border, the operation points to a structured narco-arms pipeline with foreign handlers at its core.
Key Takeaways
Amritsar Commissionerate Police arrested four accused on 18 July in a cross-border drug and arms smuggling operation.
Total seizure: 5.557 kg of heroin and two pistols — a 9MM Glock and a .30 bore .
The largest single haul — 4.589 kg of heroin — was recovered from accused Sunil Saroj .
Two accused, Harwinder Singh and Vansh Singh , reside near the International Border , pointing to a strategic cross-border role.
Three of the four accused are habitual offenders with prior cases under the NDPS Act and Arms Act .
Two FIRs registered under the NDPS Act and Arms Act ; investigation is ongoing.
Amritsar Commissionerate Police has dismantled a cross-border drug and illegal arms smuggling network, arresting four accused and recovering 5.557 kg of heroin and two sophisticated pistols on 18 July, Punjab Director General of Police (DGP) Gaurav Yadav confirmed. The operation, conducted in Amritsar, exposes a supply chain reportedly linked to foreign-based smugglers funnelling narcotics and weapons into Punjab.
The Accused and What Was Seized
The four individuals arrested have been identified as Akash Sandhu (30), Sunil Saroj (40), Harwinder Singh (32), and Vansh Singh (40). According to police, Sandhu, Saroj, and Harwinder are habitual offenders with prior cases registered against them under the NDPS Act and the Arms Act.
The seized weapons include one 9MM Glock pistol and one .30 bore pistol — both classified as sophisticated firearms. The total heroin recovered across the operation weighed 5.557 kg.
How the Operation Unfolded
Commissioner of Police (Amritsar) Gurpreet Bhullar said the operation was triggered by a tip-off. Police first arrested Akash Sandhu, recovering 192 grams of heroin from his possession. On his disclosure, an additional 776 grams were recovered from a separate location.
Sandhu's statement led investigators to Sunil Saroj, from whom 4.589 kg of heroin — the single largest seizure in the chain — was recovered. Acting on further leads, police then apprehended Harwinder Singh and Vansh Singh, from whom the two pistols were seized. Notably, Harwinder was already wanted in a separate commercial-quantity heroin case.
The Cross-Border Angle
Preliminary investigation has revealed that the accused were in direct contact with foreign-based smugglers who supplied narcotics and arms consignments for onward distribution to criminal networks in the region. Critically, both Harwinder Singh and Vansh Singh are residents of the same village located in close proximity to the International Border — a detail investigators say points to their strategic role in facilitating cross-border smuggling.
This comes amid Punjab Police's sustained crackdown on narco-terror networks that have increasingly combined drug trafficking with arms supply, a pattern security agencies have flagged as a growing threat along the India-Pakistan border corridor.
Legal Action
Two First Information Reports (FIRs) have been registered against the accused under Sections 21-B, 21-C and 29 of the NDPS Act and Sections 25(6, 7 and 8) of the Arms Act. The investigation is ongoing, with police probing the full extent of the network and its foreign connections.
Point of View
Where narcotics revenue funds weapons procurement. The proximity of two accused to the border is a structural red flag, not a coincidence. What this bust does not yet answer is how many such nodes exist in the same corridor and whether the foreign handlers have been identified. Until those links are traced and prosecuted, dismantling the distribution end merely creates a vacancy that another recruit can fill.
NationPress
18 Jul 2026
Frequently Asked Questions
What was seized in the Amritsar cross-border smuggling bust?
Police seized 5.557 kg of heroin and two sophisticated pistols — one 9MM Glock and one .30 bore — from four accused arrested in Amritsar on 18 July. The seizures were made in a chain of recoveries triggered by a police tip-off.
Who are the four accused arrested by Amritsar Police?
The four arrested individuals are Akash Sandhu (30), Sunil Saroj (40), Harwinder Singh (32), and Vansh Singh (40). Three of them — Sandhu, Saroj, and Harwinder — have prior criminal records under the NDPS Act and the Arms Act.
What is the cross-border link in this case?
Preliminary investigation has revealed the accused were in contact with foreign-based smugglers who supplied them with narcotics and arms for distribution to criminal elements in the region. Two of the accused live in a village near the International Border, which police say indicates a deliberate strategic role in cross-border smuggling.
What charges have been filed against the accused?
Two FIRs have been registered under Sections 21-B, 21-C and 29 of the NDPS Act and Sections 25(6, 7 and 8) of the Arms Act. The investigation is ongoing.
Who confirmed the operation and what details were shared?
Punjab DGP Gaurav Yadav confirmed the arrests and seizures. Commissioner of Police (Amritsar) Gurpreet Bhullar shared operational details, including the sequence of arrests and the tip-off that initiated the crackdown.
