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NIA teams up with Punjab, Haryana & Chandigarh police to dismantle terrorist-gangster network
It was also decided to set up a ‘Joint Listing Committee’, with representative officers from the NIA and the three police forces, to list out and map the entire network of various criminal syndicates active in the northern states and UT
:CHANDIGARH: The National Investigation Agency (NIA) on Friday announced to put in place a collective institutionalised mechanism in collaboration with Haryana, Punjab and Chandigarh Police for regular and real-time information sharing and coordinated operations to dismantle organised criminal gangs in the northern region and terror syndicate ecosystem.
The decision was taken at a high-level inter-state coordination meeting held in Panchkula under the chairmanship of NIA director general (DG) Dinkar Gupta, who is a Punjab cadre IPS officer and former DGP of Punjab.
It was also decided to set up a ‘Joint Listing Committee’, with representative officers from the NIA and the three police forces, to list out and map the entire network of various criminal syndicates active in the northern states and UT.
DGP Haryana PK Agrawal underlined the urgency of taking swift and decisive action to dismantle the networks of these criminal syndicates.
“It was also decided to hold monthly meetings of all the stakeholders to address the issue of organised crimes and criminals in these areas,” the Haryana police said in a statement.
DGP Punjab Gaurav Yadav emphasised that international liaison and cooperation with law enforcement agencies in foreign countries is essential to extradite and deport active leaders and members based abroad in various countries.
The top police brass present in the meeting discussed activities of leaders and members of organised criminal syndicates/groups operating in the northern states, and also the ongoing investigations in various criminal cases connected with them.
During the meeting, interventions required at both structural and operational level to dismantle the terror-syndicate’s ecosystem, were discussed threadbare, and it was decided to formulate an institutionalised mechanism for timely sharing of actionable inputs with all the stakeholders.
“The growing nexus between criminals and gangsters, with their inter-state linkages and conflicts, has become a cause for concern for the northern states,” police said.
“The foot soldiers, recruits, harbourers etc of these criminal gangster-syndicates are spread across the states of north India, requiring a coordinated and synergised effort by the police of different states to deal with them effectively.”
Representatives from various agencies presented their findings and insights into the ongoing investigations during the meeting. Officials from the NIA, Haryana Police, Punjab Police, and Chandigarh Police made presentations and shared information regarding the operations, modus operandi, and key individuals associated with these criminal syndicates.
The focus of the discussion revolved around devising strategies to disrupt the activities of organised criminal syndicates, strengthen intelligence sharing mechanisms, and coordinate efforts to apprehend the individuals involved in these unlawful activities.
This was the second such meeting steered by the NIA DG for tackling the menace of the organised criminal terror syndicates. The NIA DG had started these meetings to collectively deal with such syndicates through sharing of findings and inputs among the various police agencies and forces.
Underscoring the need for collaborative action in combating organised crime, NIA DG Gupta called for enhanced cooperation and information sharing among the NIA, and police forces of Punjab, Chandigarh and Haryana to address the growing threat posed by these criminal syndicates, particularly in the northern region.
DGP Chandigarh Praveer Ranjan underlined the importance of close inter-state coordination and joint operations, saying criminal syndicates were operating all over, including Chandigarh.
The Haryana police said that the NIA, which is investigating three such cases against criminal terror syndicate, shared its findings and observations on the methodology adopted by the syndicates operating from jails. The NIA emphasised the need for fast tracking of trials against these gangsters as an effective tool to tackle the problem, along with the need for a witness protection plan.
Among others who attended the meeting included special DGP (internal security) Punjab, RN Dhoke; ADGP (CID) Haryana Alok Mittal; and ADGP (law and order) Haryana Mamta Singh.
