New Delhi: Investigators probing the network of Saleem Ahmed, alias Pistol, an international arms supplier, have uncovered his ties with fugitive gangster Shariq Satha, a D-Company operative. Sources reveal that Pakistan’s ISI facilitated a collaboration between Pistol and Shariq with manufacturers from Darra Adam Khel to establish a covert weapons factory near the India-Pakistan border.Darra, around 175 kilometres from Islamabad, has been known for decades for manufacturing and selling illegal weapons, with shops offering copies of nearly every weapon available globally. The ISI, through distributors in Darra, has been pushing first copies of high-end pistols into India due to rising demand among organised gangs in Delhi, Haryana, UP, Rajasthan and Punjab.“The demand for pistols has inflated the prices, with buyers (gangsters) paying as much as Rs 5-10 lakh for a first copy of a pistol like Zigana. A copy of Girsan, which was used by Atiq Ahmed’s killers, also goes for the same price,” an officer said. “The finesse with which these pistols are made makes it impossible for buyers in India to differentiate them. The difference only becomes apparent when they are seized and analysed by police,” the officer added. Pistol’s revelations have left the agencies alarmed.Shariq, accused of orchestrating the Sambhal violence last year, is involved in crimes that transcend India’s borders. With 54 cases registered against him in Sambhal and other areas, his criminal network spans multiple states. Sources said Shariq began as a vehicle thief, stealing luxury cars across India and sending them to Nepal. This prompted UP Police to invoke the National Security Act against him.Meanwhile, brief visits to jail prompted his swift rise through the ranks and he soon started peddling fake Indian currency notes (FICN) for the ISI. A dossier on him says that he replaced Iqbal Kana, ISI’s FICN kingpin, after the demonetisation in 2016.With involvement in the theft of over 1,000 vehicles from Delhi and FICN smuggling, Shariq was placed on Delhi Police’s most wanted list. In 2020, he was released on bail and soon fled to Dubai using a fake passport obtained in Delhi. This led agencies to issue a lookout circular against him. Last year, Shariq’s name surfaced in the communal violence in Sambhal after his men were found reportedly distributing Pakistani and American cartridges used during the unrest.The clashes occurred during a court-ordered Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) inspection of the Mughal-era Shahi Jama Masjid. Five people died, while 29 cops and several others were injured in the clashes.
