Punjab Police bring back 17 gangsters from abroad in last six months

Punjab Police have brought back 17 gangsters from foreign countries to India over the last six months. According to an NDTV report, Cabinet Minister and senior Aam Aadmi Party leader Harpal Singh Chima provided this information on Monday. He stated that a strict message has been sent by the state government that criminals can no longer escape the law by fleeing abroad.

Minister Harpal Singh Chima attributed this success to the government's 'Gangstern Te Vaar' campaign. Providing detailed information, he stated that between January 20 and November 7, the police conducted a total of 1,61,266 raids. During this extensive operation, approximately 2,162 proclaimed offenders were arrested.

Through operations carried out by coordinating at the international level, wanted gangsters have been brought to India from various countries. Chima released a list of these gangsters, which includes Ramanjit Singh Romi from Hong Kong, Amrit Singh from Maldives, and Prabhpreet Singh from Germany. Additionally, Parminder Singh Pindi from UAE, Sajjan Mahesh and Sukhdev Kumar alias Manish Baidi from Indonesia have been brought back.

The list further includes Ajay Singh, Pawandeep Singh, and Jaspreet Singh from Malaysia, as well as Karmbir Singh Deol from Canada. Harpal Singh Chima stated, "These operations demonstrate the capability and determination of our police force to pursue criminals beyond geographical boundaries." He further added that the government will present strong evidence before the court so that these criminals can be punished.

Along with the police statistics and claims of international coordination, there was a clear political message behind this statement. The Aam Aadmi Party has directly targeted its traditional political rivals for the gangster culture in Punjab. Minister Chima alleged that gangsters were created and encouraged in Punjab during the Akali-BJP regime and were allowed to flourish further under the Congress regime. He accused previous governments of failing to effectively curb organised crime.

The timing of this political attack is considered extremely significant. The 2027 Punjab Assembly elections are approaching, and discussions regarding a potential alliance between the BJP and Akali Dal have intensified. In such a situation, the Aam Aadmi Party government has increased its political aggression on the issue of gangsters and organised crime.