GRP constable arrested for illegal possession of US-made pistol

MUMBAI: A 49-year-old constable was arrested by the Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Terminus Government Railway Police (GRP) on Saturday for the possession of an automatic pistol made in the USA with five live cartridges.
The constable was booked under the Arms Act, 1959 (which regulates the possession of arms and ammunition in India) and arrested in relation to discrepancies in his statement. On February 19, constable Tulshiram Shinde, a resident of Kanjurmarg, reported to duty and was posted for the night shift at the Sandhurst Road railway station. Around 7.58 in the morning, he was found carrying a US-made automatic pistol which had five live cartridges.
Considering the seriousness of the offence, a case was immediately registered under section 3 (licence must for acquisition and possession of firearms and ammunition) and 25 (punishment for breach of licence requirements) of the Indian Arms Act, 1959.
“We started an inquiry into the matter but could not find any clues in the case, as the spot which was shown by Shinde to us was not covered under CCTV cameras. We could not see Shinde also going towards the spot during the said time and did not find any other person proceeding towards the spot on the date and time and therefore questioned him multiple times,” said a police officer.
The police officer said that this made us suspect Shinde’s story, as he kept on changing his statements.
“He first told us that he found the pistol and decided to keep it at the same spot and wait for its owner to return in search of the weapon and collect it. This way, he said, he could have arrested the person, who had dropped the pistol. However, he later collected it himself and brought it to the police station after which a case was registered against unknown persons. But, he was not seen proceeding towards the spot at the relevant time,” said the police officer.
Later he also claimed that he found the pistol with a man and he took the pistol and allowed the man to go.
“We are questioning him and arresting him, as his role is suspicious. We need to find out where and how he got the US-made weapon,” said the police officer.
The incident took place after the Mumbai police started a drive against illegal possession of firearms after three recent shootouts in one of which Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Abhishek Ghosalkar was killed.