16 gangsters held in week-long crackdown

According to Delhi Police, some of the arrests have helped avert several planned target and revenge killings in the national capital

In a significant week-long crackdown, the special cell of Delhi Police has arrested 16 members of various gangs operating in Delhi and neighbouring states, senior officers aware of the case said on Saturday. These gangs are reportedly led by jailed gangsters and fugitives hiding abroad, they reported, adding that the operations, conducted in five separate raids, led to the recovery of 10 pistols and 56 cartridges.

Delhi Police special cell with 16 arrested gang members. (HT Photo)

According to the officers, some of the arrests have helped avert several planned target and revenge killings in the national capital. These killings were orchestrated by gangsters imprisoned in Delhi and other states, as well as gang leaders running extortion and other illegal activities from countries like Canada, Portugal, Dubai, the United States, and the United Kingdom.

As part of a strategy to avoid glorifying gangsters and their criminal activities, which can influence and attract young people, the police have withheld the names of the arrested individuals and the syndicates they are associated with. “This is an experiment to prevent promoting gangs and gangsters. Their glorification through social media and videos showcasing a lavish lifestyle and gun culture attracts young minds towards crime without realising the consequences. By not highlighting the names of the gangs or gangsters, we aim to curb this menace,” said a senior special cell officer who supervised the week-long crackdown.

Deputy commissioner of police (special cell) Amit Kaushik noted a recent surge in the criminal activities of organized gangs, prompting the special cell to pursue these syndicates and avert the threats they posed to the city’s law and order. During the operations, extensive intelligence networks were activated, and teams were strategically deployed to dismantle the gangs operated by foreign-based gangsters and those incarcerated in jails.

“Several parts of Delhi were monitored through local intelligence units while technical teams identified communication methods, as much of the surge in criminal activities originated from abroad. Gang leaders abroad or in jails recruit minors or those with minor records to avoid detection. Social media and songs glamorising gang life attract more teenagers, who are lured into incidents of firing and even murders and then discarded once their usefulness ends,” explained DCP Kaushik.

Sharing details of five operations that led to 16 members of various gangs being arrested, the DCP said the first operation resulted in the arrest of five gang members from Delhi and Jalandhar in Punjab on Friday. Two pistols with 12 cartridges were recovered from them, he added.

“Out of the five gang members, three were hitmen of the gang while the remaining two, including a woman, recruited for the syndicate through social media. The latter two further passed instructions to the hitmen on behalf of the gang leaders while also arranging arms and ammunitions for them. Their arrest has averted possible harm to a reputed businessman in Delhi,” added Kaushik.

In the second operation, three members of another gang were arrested with a countrymade pistol and five live rounds, the DCP said. One of them was linked to a murder case, and the remaining two also had criminal records.

A third operation was carried out by another special cell team on the intervening night of Friday and Saturday, which lead to the arrest of five hitmen of a third gang, with the recovery of four pistols and 30 cartridges, said police. They added that their arrest has averted the planned murder of two rival gang members.

Four of the arrested individuals had prior criminal charges such as attempt to murder, robbery, extortion and Arms Act, whereas two of them were wanted in a case of firing for extortion in the Rohini area and in an attempt to murder case in Rewari, Haryana,” DCP Kaushik said. In two additional operations between June 15 and June 21, special cell teams arrested three members of two different gangs, recovering three firearms and nine live rounds, he added.