Nine offenders including one minor have been taken into custody by the Delhi Police’s Special Cell during a pan-Indian operation. The suspects were wanted in connection with shootings, extortions, murders, and the supply of weapons to the Lawrence Bishnoi-Goldy Brar gang, according to the officials.
The police said they have recovered seven pistols, 31 live cartridges and 11 mobile phones from those arrested from Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Punjab, Haryana, Uttar Pradesh and Bihar. According to an officer, the police said that by arresting them, they had stopped some contract killings and other horrible crimes in Delhi.
Nine agents from the Bishnoi and Brar communities have been taken into custody, according to Deputy Commissioner of Police (Special Cell) Pratiksha Godara. The team was led by inspectors Shiv Kumar and Satish Rana and was overseen by ACPs Lalit Mohan Negi and Hridya Bhushan. Of them, two each have been arrested from Delhi, UP and Punjab, and one each from Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Haryana and Bihar, Godara said.
Currently, Bishnoi is being held at the Sabarmati jail in Gujarat, while Brar—originally named Satinderjeet Singh—is believed to be hiding in Canada. The National Investigation Agency (NIA) is looking for Brar, who is allegedly leading a gang from overseas.
The Karni Sena leader Sukhdev Singh Gogamedi in December 2023 and Punjabi musician Sinddu Moosewala in May 2022 were both killed by the Bishnoi-Brar gang. Additionally, the gang is claimed to have been involved in the firing outside Salman Khan’s home and threats against the Bollywood actor.
According to the police, several of the gang members that were arrested are still in contact with one another via encrypted communication services like Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp.
The accused, named as 22-year-old Manjeet Singh alias Guri, was allegedly involved in three prior criminal cases, including an assault on a fellow prisoner and an attack on police officers when he was imprisoned, according to another police official.
Guri communicated with Brar via a someone named Ajay Rana. In November 2023, he and the accused Gurpal went to kill a property dealer in Zirakpur, Punjab, on Brar’s orders because the merchant had refused to give the gang the extortion money.
Guri and Gurpal were stopped by Delhi police in Zirakpur while they were traveling. The two started shooting at the police as they saw them. Gurpal was able to escape, but Guri was shot in retaliation and taken into custody. Later, Gurpal, 26, was taken into custody.
According to the police, the other accused, 25-year-old Jaspreet Singh, also known as Rahul, was previously involved in two criminal cases: one involving the NDPS and the other under the Arms Act in Amritsar.
The 26-year-old Sachin Kumar, also known as Rahul, has an ITI diploma in the electrical stream. In 2014, he was implicated in a robbery criminal case in Bareilly, Uttar Pradesh. He once provided the Bishnoi gang members with weapons.
Twenty-year-old Santosh, also known as Sultan Baba, was a transport company employee and a supporter of MP criminal Durlabh Kashyap, who was killed.
The Bishnoi gang served as an inspiration for Manjeet, a 24-year-old who was arming its members.
The 22-year-old Abhay Soni, also known as Kabir, had formed a Facebook group called “Rajasthan Shooters” and made touch with other people who were being held accountable for robberies and other offenses.
The feared mobster Durlabh Kashyap was followed by Dharmendra, better known as Kartik, a 21-year-old cold storage worker who also joined several Facebook groups and engaged in illegal activity.
The 27-year-old Santosh Kumar used to supply other Bishnoi-Brar gang members with guns.