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From NSG to ‘drug kingpin’: Journey of Commando who fought during 26/11 attacks
Bajrang Singh was arrested late Wednesday night from Ratangarh in Rajasthan’s Churu district with a whopping 200 kilograms of cannabis (ganja).
A former National Security Guard (NSG) commando, who took part in the anti-terror operation during the 26/11 Mumbai attacks, was nabbed by the Rajasthan Police for allegedly being the ‘kingpin’ of a cannabis smuggling racket.
The accused ex-commando, identified as Bajrang Singh, was arrested late Wednesday night from Ratangarh in Rajasthan’s Churu district with a whopping 200 kilograms of cannabis (ganja), PTI reported, citing Inspector General of Police Vikas Kumar.
According to the police, Singh was allegedly involved in smuggling 'ganja' from Telangana and Odisha into Rajasthan. The "drug kingpin" belonged to Sikar district and carried a bounty of ₹25,000, the officer cited in the PTI report said.
The arrest was made by the state's Anti-Terrorist Squad (ATS) and Anti-Narcotics Task Force (ANTF) under 'Operation Gaanjaney'.
"This operation was a result of weeks of planning and intelligence sharing. The arrest of a hardened operative like Bajrang is a significant achievement in neutralising the terror-narcotics nexus in Rajasthan," PTI quoted the IGP as saying.
From BSG, NSG to ‘drug kingpin’
Bajrang Singh left studies after Class 10 and joined the Border Security Force (BSF), where he served briefly in Punjab, Assam, Rajasthan, Odisha, and West Bengal, protecting the country's borders against infiltrators and fighting Maoists before being discharged.
Later, he served for seven years as an NSG commando. He was part of the network during the 2008 anti-terror operation in the Mumbai 26/11 terror attack.
According to the police, Singh had political ambitions and tried to push his wife to contest local elections in 2021. While the attempt did not bring the desired result, it gave him exposure to local circles and strengthened his influence.
The accused also established connections with criminal elements in Odisha and Rajasthan, and sought to leverage his village standing to further narcotics and terror-linked activities. He was earlier arrested near Hyderabad for smuggling two quintals of Ganja in 2023.
Several cases were filed against the accused over the years, including one in his home district, Sikar, after several quintals of the banned drug were recovered from him.
The police revealed that the ATS and ANTF teams had been monitoring his movements for nearly two months. The accused even attempted to evade arrest by using fake mobile IDs and hiding in remote villages. However, the cops traced him to Churu using technical intelligence and ground-level informers.
