By Raju Vernekar
Mumbai, June 13:
Even as Prime Minister Narendra Modi is scheduled to visit Dehu in Pune in Maharashtra, to inaugurate the Sant Tukaram temple on Tuesday, the Pune police seized 1,105 bullets from a godown located at Guruwar Peth and arrested the scrap dealer, on Saturday night.
The bullets were seized from the godown “Gauri Ali” in Havelli taluka and the scrap dealer Dinesh Kumar Kallusingh Saroj was arrested. He was produced before the Pune Sessions Court on Sunday after which the court remanded him to police custody till June 15.
Acting on a tip-off about the illegal storage of arms, the action was taken during an “all-out operation” campaign organized by the Pune police ahead of the VVIP movement in the district.
The police patrol team led by Police Inspector Sandeep Bhosale raided the premises and confiscated 56 live cartridges, 79 bad cartridges, and 970 bullet leads, estimated at Rs. 1.56 lakh from the spot, a statement by the Pune crime branch said.
The accused scrap dealer Dinesh Kumar Kallusingh Saroj (34), residing at Parvati Darshan, was arrested and an FIR under Arms Act and the Maharashtra Police Act, was registered at Khadak Police Station against him. Saroj is originally from the Pratapgad district of Uttar Pradesh.
The Joint Commissioner (Law and Order) Sandeep Karnik has directed all the police units to search for the externed criminals, goons, and wanted accused persons and take action against them, ahead of PM’s visit.
Speaking to the Imphal Times DCP (crime) Sriniwas Ghadge said that the investigation is going on to find out from where the accused procured such a large quantity of cartridges and bullets. It is also being probed whether he supplied cartridges or firearms to anyone else in the city or elsewhere. Police sub-inspector Sanjay Gaikwad is conducting further investigations in the case.