Maharashtra police have seized a massive cache of nearly 5,000 'import quality' weapons in Nanded, raising concerns about potential links to organised crime and illegal weapon distribution.
Police seized 4,796 sharp-edged weapons of "import quality", collectively worth about Rs 43 lakh, from an abandoned godown in Maharashtra's Nanded city on Thursday morning, an official said.
While some of the weapons could be meant for ceremonial and religious purposes, the rest could be used in crimes, the official said.
Acting on inputs about illegal weapon storage in the Abchalnagar area of the city, the police detained a man who led them to weapons, including swords and daggers, 'khanjar' and 'gupti', said Nanded Superintendent of Police Abinash Kumar.
The top official said that the seized weapons are of "import quality" and could be used for crimes. "We seized 4,796 sharp-edged weapons illegally stored in an abandoned godown," he said.
The police have sent out the message that they can also reach the suppliers of these weapons, the official said.
"We will expose the entire supply chain. We are also going to invoke sections concerning organised crime in this case," he added.