Who Is Salim Pistol? India's Most Wanted Arms Supplier Nabbed In Nepal

New Delhi: Sheikh Salim, famously known as 'Salim Pistol', one of India’s most wanted illegal arms suppliers, was arrested in Nepal on Saturday. According to officials, the arrest was the result of a joint operation by the Delhi Police Special Cell, Indian intelligence agencies, and the Nepal Police.

Salim had been trafficking advanced weapons from Pakistan into India for several years. Authorities have uncovered links connecting him to Pakistan's ISI and Dawood Ibrahim's D-Company. He reportedly provided arms to prominent gangsters like Lawrence Bishnoi and Hashim Baba, and his name was also linked to the Sidhu Moosewala murder case.

Who Is Salim Pistol?

The Salim pistol is originally from Jafrabad in Delhi. Salim left school after Class 8 and started working as a driver. His criminal activities date back to 2000, when he and an associate, Mukesh Gupta, also known as Kaka, were caught stealing vehicles. He was arrested on May 25, 2000, under IPC sections 379, 411, and 34, as reported by news agency ANI.

In 2011, Salim was involved in a major armed robbery in Jafrabad involving Rs 20 lakh. He was arrested in 2013 and charged under sections 395 and 397 of the IPC. Over time, through the criminal ranks, he became a major arms trafficker with international ties.

Pistol Network

Police uncovered Salim’s deep involvement in smuggling Turkish-made Zigana pistols, which Indian gangsters highly seek after. He collaborated with two siblings from Khurja, Bulandshahr, who assisted in smuggling these weapons from Pakistan into India.

The pistol parts were dismantled, hidden in separate compartments of vehicles, and later reassembled, according to media reports. A Zigana pistol smuggled via Nepal sells for around Rs 6 lakh in India, while those delivered by drones from Pakistan fetch around Rs 4 lakh.