Gujarat ATS arrests wanted accused in cross-border heroin, arms smuggling case

The Gujarat Anti-Terrorism Squad has arrested a wanted accused in a cross-border heroin and grenade-pistol smuggling case registered in Punjab, officials said on Thursday.

The accused, Rehmat Ali Sheikh, son of Ilyas Mohammad Sheikh and a resident of Bhalla Colony in Amritsar, Punjab, was apprehended from the Rakhial area of Ahmedabad following specific intelligence inputs.

According to officials, Deputy Superintendent of Police Harsh Upadhyaya received information that Rehmat Ali, who is wanted in connection with case registered at Rajasansi Police Station, had fled Punjab. The input suggested that after passing through Bihar, he had reached Gujarat and was residing in Rakhial while working at an embroidery factory.

The information was shared with senior ATS officials, following which Superintendent of Police K Siddhartha constituted a team to verify the lead. After confirming the accused’s presence at the factory, a team detained him and brought him to the ATS office in Ahmedabad for further interrogation.

During preliminary questioning, officials said, Rehmat Ali allegedly disclosed his involvement in a larger narcotics and arms smuggling network operating along the India–Pakistan border in Punjab.

Police said that in January 2026, consignments comprising heroin, hand grenades and pistols were allegedly smuggled across the Pakistan border into Punjab. In connection with the case registered on January 29, at Rajasansi Police Station, two other accused were arrested earlier and contraband including 42.9 kg of heroin, four hand grenades, one Star-mark pistol and 46 live cartridges was seized.

The case was registered under sections of the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act and sections of the Explosive Substances Act. Rehmat Ali had been absconding since the registration of the offence, officials said.

Investigators believe that after fleeing Punjab, the accused first escaped to Nepal and later travelled through Bihar before reaching Ahmedabad, where he allegedly took up employment to evade arrest.

The Gujarat ATS has informed the Punjab Police about the detention and initiated procedures to hand over the accused for further legal action in the case.

Further investigation into the broader network is under way, officials said.