Punjab Police Bust Drug and Arms Networks Ahead of Amit Shah’s Jalandhar Visit

According to the DGP, a preliminary investigation indicated that those arrested were involved in supplying narcotics and illegal weapons. Police are now probing the networks' wider backward and forward linkages, including possible connections with handlers based outside India.

The latest action comes a day after Amritsar Rural Police reported the dismantling of another alleged arms and narcotics network. Three members of a family, including a woman, her husband and her brother, were arrested in that case. Police said they recovered 10.030 kg of heroin, an AK-47, an AK-56, three magazines and 10 cartridges.

The police action coincides with Union Home Minister Amit Shah’s visit to Jalandhar on Wednesday, where he is scheduled to address the concluding rally of the BJP’s 13-day ‘Nasha Mukt Punjab Yatra’. The campaign has travelled across all 117 Assembly constituencies and covered nearly 4,000 km, according to reports.

The BJP has positioned the anti-drug campaign as a major political issue ahead of the 2027 Punjab Assembly elections. The concluding rally is being held in the Paragpur area near Jalandhar, with the party making arrangements for a large gathering.

Punjab BJP president Kewal Singh Dhillon has accused the Aam Aadmi Party government of failing to control the state's drug problem and has alleged that the availability of heroin has increased during its tenure. The AAP and other political parties have also been engaged in a wider political debate over responsibility for Punjab’s drug crisis ahead of the elections.

Police said the latest operations are part of their ongoing efforts to identify and dismantle organised narcotics and illegal arms networks in the state. Further investigation into the arrested suspects and their alleged associates is underway.