PIONEER EDGE NEWS SERVICE /Dehradun
The Special Task Force (STF) has arrested another accused in connection with the fake arms licence racket. With this arrest, the total number of accused held in the case so far has reached 13. The accused identified as Palvinder Singh, a resident of Kashipur in Udham Singh Nagar district, was arrested during a raid conducted by the STF on Sunday.
According to the STF, the investigation has revealed that the accused had obtained two forged arms licences using the same fake licence number and had purchased two weapons on the basis of those documents. During the raid, the STF recovered one semi-automatic .30 bore pistol, one .315 bore rifle and eight live cartridges from his possession. The recovered weapons and fake licence have been seized for further investigation.
The STF senior superintendent of police Ajai Singh said that the fake arms licence network is much larger than initially believed and could have links beyond Uttarakhand, making it a matter of national-level investigation. He said that the STF has so far arrested 13 accused and recovered 19 illegal firearms, 358 live cartridges and a large number of fake and suspicious arms licences under Operation Prahar.
Singh urged people holding fake arms licences to surrender their weapons and licences voluntarily. He warned that strict legal action will be taken against anyone found possessing forged licences or illegal firearms.
