Guns Of Ramgarh: Crime Branch Probing Properties Of 3rd Generation Gun-Makers In MP

Bhopal (Madhya Pradesh): Days after busting two illegal firearms factories in the Tikamgarh district, the Crime Branch has begun a probe into the properties amassed by the alleged mastermind Surendra Vishwakarma, his father Anandi Vishwakarma, associate Narendra Parmar, and others linked to the gang.

Investigations have revealed that the family has been involved in the trade of illicit arms, infamously dubbed ‘Guns of Ramgarh’, for nearly four decades, with three generations making and supplying country-made firearms, including sophisticated semi-automatic pistols under the guise of agricultural equipment manufacturing.

What began as a crude assembling of parts gradually grew into a full-scale operation with lathe machines, rented warehouses, and a distribution chain stretching across Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, and beyond.

Officials said the gang secured properties worth several lakhs through this illegal trade. Their assets include agricultural land, residential houses, commercial shops, tractors, and warehouses, all suspected to have been purchased with proceeds from the illegal firearms business. 

The crackdown on Sunday exposed two clandestine units, one in Chanderi village under Kudila police station and the other in Ramgarh village under Jatara police station.

The factories, camouflaged as workshops for farm tools and trolleys, were producing country-made pistols with counterfeit trademarks resembling foreign-made weapons. Five pistols, raw materials, and tools capable of producing nearly 1,000 more were seized.

Anandi Vishwakarma was first caught years ago while allegedly making weapons. He was trained by a relative in Phulera, Rajasthan.Later, he inducted his sons Surendra and Dharmendra, as well as a minor grandson, into the trade. Surendra had only completed a seven-year prison sentence in a loot case earlier this year before reviving the family’s gun-making racket. Their products were distributed to criminals through a network of commission agents and middlemen.

Along with Surendra and Anandi, police have arrested Saif Ali and Mumtaz Ali for their role in the circulation of the illegal firearms. Meanwhile, associate Narendra Parmar remains absconding, with police teams conducting searches to trace him.

Properties to be seized

“Two Crime Branch teams are on the lookout for the absconding accused. Efforts are also underway to identify others linked to the network. The assets of the accused are being thoroughly examined and will be seized after due process,” said Additional DCP Shailendra Singh Chauhan.

Step to break gang’s backbone 

Police sources confirmed that once the property verification is complete, steps will be initiated to attach them under legal provisions. According to senior officials, this is aimed at breaking the backbone of the inter-state organised gang and crippling its financial network.

They said that the operation has not only uncovered the scale of the illegal trade but also exposed the deep-rooted inter-state nexus of the gang, which sustained itself for 40 years under the cover of legitimate business.