Team Blitz India
MUMBAI: In the aftermath of Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Abhishek Ghosalkar’s murder, the Mumbai police has ordered all units to verify the licences of people owning weapons for personal safety and those engaged in providing security services, an official said.
“As part of their crackdown against possession of unlicensed weapons, the Crime Branch units 6 and 7 arrested three people in 10 days,” the official said.
“Security guards and personal bodyguards hired to protect builders, politicians, etc are under the scanner, and their weapon licences are being verified,” Joint Commissioner of Police (Crime) Lakhmi Gautam told newspersons.
People who have licences from other states and use their weapons in Mumbai have to get their licenses transferred and submit documents related to their firearms to the city police, he said.
The action has come following the murder of Abhishek Ghosalkar, son of Shiv Sena UBT leader Vinod Ghosalkar, who was fatally shot in Mumbai last month, the official said. The assailant, Mauris Noronha, later shot himself with his bodyguard’s pistol. The incident took place during a Facebook live session, and the police later arrested Noronha’s bodyguard, Amarendra Mishra, under the Arms Act.
“If a person with a weapon fails to provide sufficient details or documents related to it, he or she will be booked under the Arms Act. It must be noted that people who carry weapons, whether security guards or personal bodyguards, cannot show them off,” the official said.
