One of Uttar Pradesh’s most audacious arms racket exposures in recent memory, the state police and Special Task Force (STF) raided a clandestine arms factory in the heart of Lucknow district, uncovering a disturbing nexus of illegal weapon manufacturing, wildlife trafficking, and possible cross-border smuggling — all operating barely 100 metres from the local police station.
The factory was being run from the home of 72-year-old Hakim Salahuddin alias Lala in Mirzaganj, Malihabad, a quiet locality with no prior known criminal hotspots. The scale of the arms haul and the location has sent shockwaves through the police and intelligence community, raising serious questions about administrative oversight, internal collusion, and possible terror links.
Acting on a specific intelligence input, the STF and police teams from Malihabad, Mall, and Rahimabad jointly launched a high-security raid on the evening of June 26. The operation led to the recovery of:
- 300 fully and semi-finished firearms, including country-made pistols, rifles, and Mausers
- 50,000 rounds of ammunition, neatly packed in 20 sacks
- Firearms of 315 and 312 bore used frequently in violent crimes
- Foreign-made pistols and rifles, origin under investigation
- Gunpowder, sophisticated weapon-making tools, metal-cutting instruments
- Animal skins and body parts of protected species raising possible wildlife smuggling charges
“This isn’t just a case of local-level weapon manufacturing. The recovery of foreign weapons, advanced machining tools, and bulk cartridges suggests a high-level arms trafficking network that potentially spans across state borders and even internationally,” said ADCP Jitendra Dubey, who led the operation.
Salahuddin, once known locally as a hakim or traditional medicine practitioner, had earlier operated a clinic near Malihabad post office. A man of modest appearance and soft speech, he lived with his wife a retired government school teacher and their two daughters.
One daughter is currently studying in Norway, while the other is pursuing B.Tech at a reputed college in Lucknow. Locals describe Salahuddin as “religious, quiet, and helpful.” However, behind this benign mask operated what now appears to be a multi-layered criminal empire.
Police believe Salahuddin had been running the arms factory for years, supplying illicit weapons to various districts of Uttar Pradesh. His proximity to the police station seems to have acted as a perfect cover the police never suspected a thing.
Shockingly, the search also led to the discovery of animal hides and body parts, prompting officials to alert the Wildlife Crime Control Bureau (WCCB) and Forest Department. Experts suspect that the operation may have extended into illegal wildlife trade, possibly to fund or fuel the arms network.
Forensic testing is being done to identify the species and assess whether Schedule-I protected animals under the Wildlife Protection Act were involved. The presence of such items hints at a dark crossover between arms, poaching, and underground religious or political networks.
The timing of the bust—just before Muharram processions and the annual Kawar Yatra has heightened concerns about communal flare-ups and pre-planned sabotage. Senior police officials confirmed that the STF is not ruling out links to terror outfits, communal handlers, or foreign-funded destabilisation agents.
“This scale of illegal weaponry, recovered from one private house, is not accidental. There are handlers, funders, and facilitators behind this. We are treating this as a case of national security breach, not just arms smuggling,” said a senior STF official on condition of anonymity.
Police have detained Salahuddin, his wife, daughter, and a local youth named Owais, all of whom were present during the raid. They are currently being interrogated. Digital devices, mobile phones, SIM cards, ledgers, and cash registers have been seized for forensic audit.
The house being barely 100 metres from the Malihabad police station has triggered questions about how such an operation could have run undetected for years. Was it sheer incompetence? Or was there wilful ignorance or collusion?
A departmental inquiry has been initiated into possible lapses by local law enforcement. Insiders say the STF is also examining whether information was deliberately suppressed or leaked by insiders in exchange for bribes or protection.
Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath, upon receiving details of the bust, reportedly instructed the Home Department to launch a statewide crackdown on illegal arms networks, especially in sensitive districts like Bareilly, Meerut, Moradabad, Kanpur, and Ghaziabad. “This is a wake-up call. Illegal weapons are the fuel for riots, terror, and mafia crimes. We will not allow a single element to destabilise peace in Uttar Pradesh,” a top Home Ministry source told media.
