Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar: The Nanded rural police seized 4,796 sharp-edged weapons, including swords, daggers, guptis and knives, during a nearly 24-hour raid that continued till around midnight Wednesday.Police on Thursday said the seizure was the largest of its kind in a single raid in the state. The raid was part of an operation, codenamed ‘Operation Crackdown’, on illegal businesses with a special emphasis on sharp-edged weapons, an officer said.The police said the seizure was estimated to be worth Rs 43.48 lakh in the illegal market. A case has been registered under Sections 4 and 25 of the Arms Act, and a manhunt has been launched to nab the key accused.Superintendent of police Abinash Kumar said nearly 90% of the seized weapons could be used for criminal activities, while only a small fraction appeared to be meant for ceremonial or religious purposes. He added that the police would target the entire supply chain of illegal sharp-edged weapons and take strict action against shops and platforms selling them under the guise of decorative or religious items.The operation began around 11.15pm when a police team, led by inspector Omkant Chincholkar, spotted a suspicious man at Balirampur carrying a dagger and a sword hidden around his waist. The man was detained and later identified as Abhijeet Giridhar Satpute. During questioning, Chincholkar said, Satpute said he had sourced the weapons from Guru Ramdas Nagar in the Wazirabad area.Based on his inputs, police raided the location, where a man fled upon spotting the team. During a search conducted in the presence of panch witnesses, officers found a massive stockpile of sharp-edged weapons stored allegedly for sale. The haul included 315 large swords, 135 medium-sized swords, and hundreds of daggers, khanda weapons, guptis and kukris.Police said the stock was suspected to belong to Jaswantsingh Prakashsingh Sukhmani, a resident of Abchal Nagar, who is currently absconding. Efforts are underway to trace and arrest him.The police said the raid was part of a broader drive to curb illegal arms trade and prevent criminal activities in the region. Investigators are now probing the source of the weapons, possible inter-state supply links, and if the cache was meant for distribution beyond the district.
