Two persons, including a government teacher, were arrested and 10 kgs of brown sugar, along with huge cache of arms and ammunition was recovered from their possession in North Kashmir’s Kupwara district on Sunday morning, police said.
Police added that the narcotics and the arms and ammunition were concealed in two vehicles which were seized by the police.
Giving details, the senior superintendent of police (SSP) Kupwara, Shari Ram Ambarkar, said, “Based on inputs, Kupwara police and army’s 7 RR laid a Naka at Sadna Top on Sunday morning.
“During the search operation, arms and ammunition was recovered which included 1 AK56 rifle, 2 Chinese pistol, 4 pistol magazines, 76 AK 47 rounds, 90 pistol rounds and 20 hand grenades. Besides brown sugar 10.2 kgs worth Rs 50 crores was also recovered from two vehicles bearing number JK01 AJ-029 and Santro vehicle bearing number JK05B 5471,” the SSP said.
He identified the arrested persons as Bashir Ahmad Sheikh and Abdul Amir Sheikh, both residents of Tangdhar.
One of the arrested persons, as per police is a government teacher and is working at a higher secondary school in Kupwara.
The SSP said that the arrested persons were working in close tandem with militant group Lashkar-e-Toaiba and were involved in drug trade and supply of weapons to militants operating in Kashmir.
The SSP, when asked about the spike in involvement of persons mostly living close to the line of control in drug trafficking, said, “The line of control in Kupwara is emerging as an ‘international route for drugs smuggling.”
He said that it has been observed in some cases some of the arrested persons had close relatives across the border and the Pakistan’s army has roped them and is facilitating them to smuggle the narcotics as well as arms through the line of control.
He said their relatives here in this side are being lured by them and promised to make them wealthy by the smuggling of narcotics.
“It is greed to become wealthier in short period of time that some persons are getting involved in the trade. The Pakistan’s army with help from some civilians living close to line of control use them to persuade their relatives here in the Indian side for this trade,” said SSP Kupwara, Shari Ram Ambarkar.