Illegal firearms manufacturing unit busted, five held

Khargone: An illegal firearms manufacturing unit operating near the Rupa river in Signur village under Gogawan police station limits of Khargone was busted on Friday, and five persons allegedly involved in manufacturing illegal weapons were arrested.

Superintendent of police Ravindra Verma said a joint operation was carried out by teams from Gogawan and Sanawad police stations based on a tip-off.

He said the accused were caught while manufacturing illegal firearms at a makeshift facility near the riverbank. During the raid, police seized nine handmade country-made pistols, two country-made firearms, and a large quantity of weapon manufacturing equipment and raw material collectively valued at around Rs 2.75 lakh.

Five persons 1Vikas Singh Sikligar, 19, Kanha Sikligar, 30, Suraj Singh Sikligar, 40, Gurubadal Singh Sikligar, 22, and Roshan Singh, 19, all residents of Signur village in Khargone district were arrested from the spot. One of the accused was wearing Team India’s jersey bearing the iconic No. 45 — the number famously worn by former Indian captain Rohit Sharma — when police raided the factory.

He said, "Apart from the finished weapons, police also recovered two semi-finished pistols, 11 barrels, grinding tools, grinder machines, magazines, moulds used for manufacturing magazines and pistols, blower furnace equipment, screwdrivers, hammers, pliers, files, nuts and bolts, and other metalworking tools allegedly used in the illegal manufacturing process".

A case was registered against the accused under Section 25(1)(A) of the Arms Act at Gogawan police station. During preliminary interrogation, police found that some of the arrested persons were previously booked in Arms Act-related cases.

SDOP Bhikangaon Rakesh Arya said, "The accused were produced before a court and police remand was obtained for further interrogation to ascertain the supply network and possible buyers of the illegally manufactured weapons."