Amritsar: The deportation of alleged international drug kingpin Navpreet Singh alias Nav Bhullar from Türkiye to India has raised hopes among Punjab Police investigators that his arrest could help unravel major cross-border narcotics and narco-hawala networks operating between Pakistan, Punjab and foreign-based handlers.Union home minister Amit Shah, in a post on X on Saturday, said Bhullar had been brought back to India and lodged in jail in connection with drug trafficking and other criminal cases, describing him as a “hardened narco-trafficking kingpin”. Shah said Bhullar had obtained Turkish citizenship using the fake identity of Navab Virk and continued to smuggle heroin and methamphetamine into India from Afghanistan.Bhullar’s name has figured prominently in several Punjab Police investigations into large cross-border drug consignments and trafficking networks allegedly being controlled from abroad.In October 2024, Punjab Police described the seizure of 105 kg heroin, 31.93 kg caffeine anhydrous, 17 kg DMR, five foreign-made pistols and a country-made pistol as the state’s largest-ever heroin haul. Police had then said that the two arrested accused were associates of foreign-based smuggler Navpreet Singh alias Nav Bhullar.Investigators also found indications that the consignment had been transported from Pakistan through a water route. Large rubber tubes, allegedly used for trafficking operations, were recovered from the accused. The State Special Operations Cell registered a case in Amritsar and launched an investigation into the cartel’s backward and forward linkages.The trail resurfaced in May 2025 when Amritsar Commissionerate Police busted an international narco-hawala cartel allegedly linked to Bhullar and arrested three of his operatives. Police recovered 1.01 kg heroin and traced ₹1.06 crore in hawala proceeds, including ₹84.02 lakh in cash and ₹22 lakh frozen in bank accounts.With Bhullar now back in India, investigators are expected to focus on establishing the full chain of networks allegedly operated through his overseas contacts, including the source of narcotics, Pakistan-based links, local operatives, financial channels and other handlers involved in the syndicate.
