AMRITSAR — Security agencies in Punjab have stepped up their crackdown on alleged Pakistan-linked terror and narco-trafficking networks, with a series of arrests and arms seizures in and around Amritsar exposing what investigators describe as attempts to establish cross-border networks for weapons, narcotics and terror activities.
In one of the significant recent cases, a major interstate narco-terror network allegedly linked to Pakistan’s Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) was busted in Amritsar in June 2026. Three accused were arrested during the operation, while investigators recovered an AK rifle, a revolver, around ₹11 lakh in cash, approximately 1 kg of gold and a substantial quantity of narcotics. Authorities are probing the suspected links of the accused with Pakistan-based drug syndicates and terror handlers.
The investigation has raised serious concerns because the alleged network appears to combine two of Punjab’s most serious security challenges — the flow of drugs across the international border and the movement of illegal weapons. Investigators are examining whether narcotics trafficking was being used to generate funds for criminal and terror-related operations.
The crackdown continued in July. On July 8, Punjab Police reported the dismantling of an alleged ISI-Babbar Khalsa International-linked arms module. Three persons — identified as Chintu, Jobanpreet Singh and Gurpreet Singh alias Gopi, all residents of Kakkar village in Amritsar — were arrested. Police said the operation resulted in the recovery of eight .30-bore pistols, four 9mm pistols and nine live cartridges. A Hyundai i20 allegedly used for transporting arms consignments was also seized.
The arrests are particularly significant because Kakkar village is located in the Amritsar border belt, an area that has repeatedly figured in investigations into cross-border arms and narcotics smuggling. According to investigators, the alleged network was connected to foreign-based handlers and the banned Babbar Khalsa International (BKI).
The latest developments come against the backdrop of heightened concern within Punjab Police over Pakistan’s alleged use of low-cost, high-impact methods to create instability in the state. Senior Punjab Police officers recently said the ISI was pursuing a broader, multi-pronged strategy, including the use of petrol bombs and other methods designed to create fear and communal or political unrest.
The security picture is not limited to arms and narcotics. Earlier in 2026, the State Special Operations Cell in Amritsar arrested Harpal Singh, a farmer from the Ajnala border area, on allegations of spying for Pakistan. Investigators alleged that he had been in contact with ISI operatives for nearly a year and had shared sensitive information concerning Indian security establishments. Police reportedly seized his mobile phone, which contained multiple Pakistani phone numbers, and sent the device for forensic examination.
There is also a precedent from June 2025, when Amritsar Rural Police apprehended two persons suspected of espionage activities linked to Pakistan’s ISI. Punjab Police said preliminary investigation indicated that one of the suspects had been in direct contact with ISI operatives and was allegedly transmitting sensitive information.
Taken together, these cases point to a worrying pattern: Punjab’s border districts are being targeted not through one single type of operation but through an ecosystem involving alleged espionage, narcotics, illegal arms, recruitment and terror activity. Amritsar, because of its geographical proximity to Pakistan, remains particularly vulnerable to such networks.
For Punjab’s security agencies, the challenge is therefore much larger than simply arresting individual suspects. The crucial task is to identify the handlers operating from across the border, trace the financial networks behind the trafficking, determine how weapons and drugs are being moved into the state, and dismantle the local recruitment infrastructure allegedly being used by foreign handlers.
The arrests also underline the importance of sustained intelligence coordination between Punjab Police, the State Special Operations Cell, Counter Intelligence, central intelligence agencies and other security organisations. Each individual arrest may appear isolated, but investigators are increasingly examining whether apparently separate criminal cases are actually components of a larger cross-border network.
For Amritsar and the wider Punjab border belt, the message from these investigations is clear: the battle against drugs, illegal weapons and terrorism cannot be treated as separate law-and-order problems. The emerging cases suggest that criminal trafficking and alleged Pakistan-backed terror networks can overlap — making intelligence-led policing and disruption of the entire network essential to Punjab’s security.
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