How Nepal gun assembly network led Delhi Police to arms dealer lodged in jail

The Delhi Police Crime Branch Friday re-arrested arms dealer Salim Ahmed alias Salim Pistol, 52, in a Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA) case filed in connection with an alleged cross‑border illegal arms syndicate linked to gangster Shahbaz Ansari.

Salim, who was arrested near the India-Nepal border last August and has since been lodged in Tihar Jail, was brought on a five-day police remand for questioning, officials confirmed.

Police said fresh evidence gathered during the investigation into Ansari’s alleged arms network pointed to Salim’s role in coordinating a supply chain that routed foreign-made pistol components through Nepal before the weapons were smuggled into India.

Inside the racket

According to Crime Branch sources, the racket allegedly smuggled parts of foreign‑made pistols into Nepal by concealing them inside cargo consignments or declaring them as industrial scrap.

Officials said the consignments declared as scrap metal contained pistol components mixed with genuine industrial waste to evade customs scrutiny.

They said once the consignments reached Nepal, the parts were sorted, assembled and tested in clandestine workshops before being smuggled into India, concealed inside vehicles or hidden with legitimate cargo.

Police said these weapons were then supplied to gangsters.

Investigators said they uncovered details of the Nepal assembly route when they busted Ansari’s alleged arms network earlier this year. Ansari, police believe, is operating from Bangladesh.

Story continues below this ad

Official sources said the syndicate used two routes: the Pakistan border, using drones and illegal crossings along Punjab and Rajasthan, and the porous Nepal border.

While earlier investigations had pointed to drone drops and clandestine shipments from across the western frontier, police said the Nepal route has now emerged as a major pathway after new leads tied to Salim were uncovered.

Salim link

Police said communications records and other material recovered during the investigation into Ansari’s network showed links to Salim, prompting investigators to trace the supply chain.

Officials said evidence indicated that Salim played an active role in coordinating the Nepal leg of the alleged racket, working with contacts across the border to ensure steady flows of parts and finished weapons.

Story continues below this ad

Investigators are now trying to identify Nepal-based operatives who allegedly assembled and dispatched the pistols. Officials said Salim’s re-arrest will help map the alleged supply chain.

Life and crimes of Salim Pistol

Salim hails from Delhi’s Seelampur. He dropped out of school after Class VIII. He used to work as a driver before allegedly jumping into the world of crime and illegal arms supply, said police.

According to the police records, Salim was first booked in a vehicle theft case in 2000 along with his associate, Mukesh Gupta alias Kaka. He was arrested and later got bail.

In 2011, he was booked in a Rs 20-lakh robbery case in Jafrabad. In 2013, he was arrested in this case. He later became involved in the supply of illegal firearms.

Story continues below this ad

According to police, Salim has allegedly been involved in supplying arms to India’s top gangsters, including Lawrence Bishnoi and Hashim Baba, and criminals with help from people abroad.

Salim was also arrested in 2018 in an arms supply case. He fled abroad after getting bail and went to Pakistan.

Police said he was operating from abroad and had also established a base in Nepal, and would visit the country frequently.

It was during one such visit to meet someone at the Delhi-Nepal border in 2025 that he was nabbed by a Special Cell team.

Police said his name allegedly cropped up in connection with the murders of Punjabi singer Sidhu Moosewala and NCP leader Baba Siddique for allegedly supplying weapons to the shooters.

Story continues below this ad

He has also been allegedly associated with Pakistan’s Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) and Mumbai underworld don Dawood Ibrahim and his D-Company, they said.