Seppa: The East Kameng police have served notices under Section 41 A of the Code of Criminal Procedure (CrPC) to four persons of Lada circle, one for illegally manufacturing firearms and selling them and to three others for buying the same.
The police served the notices to Niso Miji, the manufacturer and Fesham Rapung, Afio Sonam and Kadai Miji who were reportedly the buyers.
East Kameng superintendent of police Rahul Gupta said information was received earlier this year that illegal firearms for hunting and self-defense purposes were being manufactured and the same was being sold to the public in the far-flung Lada circle of the district.
“Accordingly intelligence was gathered to identify the persons, and based on the inputs, the police recently apprehended one Niso Miji and also recovered one country made pistol and tool-box used for manufacturing of firearms from his possession,” Gupta said.
A suo-moto case under Section 25(1)(a) of the Arms Act, 1959 was registered against Niso on March 18 after which he pleaded guilty to manufacturing the firearms and selling them at a price of Rs 10-15000/-.
Niso was served the 41A CrPC notice keeping his medical condition in mind, the SP said.
A police team that consisted of Seppa police station officer-in-charge inspector Sochi Don, his Khenewa counterpart sub-inspector Shakti Lamgu and constables Marham Doka, Senia Yangfo, Shankar Taniang later also managed to recover 5 more firearms following raids conducted in the area.
Meanwhile, the East Kameng police led by SP Gupta and the local administration led by Lada circle officer Mem Ejing also organized an illegal arms surrender campaign in the area with the support of gaon buras and community based organizations.
A total of 36 firearms were surrendered by the locals during the camp held on March 30.
“Besides helping eradicate the practice of manufacturing illegal firearms, the campaign will also go a long way in protecting the wildlife of the area,” SP Gupta said.
