Chandigarh, Oct 25 : Punjab Police's Special Operation Cell of Amritsar has apprehended an operative of a terror network and recovered two improvised explosive devices (IEDs), weighing around 2.5 kg each, packed with high-grade RDX and equipped with timers for detonation, said Director General of Police (DGP) Gaurav Yadav here on Saturday.

The accused has been identified as Manpreet Singh, alias Tiddi, a resident of Kotla Tarkhana village in Amritsar. He has a criminal history, being previously involved in two criminal cases registered in police stations of Batala and Kalanaur. After spending around one and a half years in Gurdaspur and Amritsar jails, he was released in February 2025 and he subsequently resumed his criminal activities.

DGP Yadav said preliminary investigation has revealed that the accused was working on the directions of his handlers based in Armenia, Britain and Germany, who are further receiving instructions from a Pakistan-based mastermind of a banned terrorist organisation.

Sharing operational details, Assistant Inspector General (Amritsar) Sukhminder Singh Mann said acting swiftly on a specific intelligence input, the police arrested suspect Manpreet Singh and recovered a pistol of .30 bore along with ammunition from his possession. Following his disclosure, two IEDs, packed in metal containers with high-grade RDX and equipped with timers for detonation, are also recovered from the area of Kotla Tarkhana village, he said.

The AIG said probe further indicated that around two weeks back, the Pakistan-based handler facilitated a drone-dropping of the seized consignment in the Ajnala sector, which was retrieved by the arrested person and further concealed by him near a canal close to his Kotla Tarkhana village.

His handlers had instructed him to remain on standby and await further orders to hand over the IEDs to another contact for intended use, he added.

/IANS