The calm façade of Malihabad, on the outskirts of Lucknow, was shattered when the Uttar Pradesh Special Task Force (STF) raided the home of Hakim Salahuddin, a 72-year-old known in the area as a traditional medicine practitioner. From this modest residence, STF officers recovered 12–13 sophisticated firearms—including pistols, rifles, and Mausers—and over 3,000 cartridges. Remarkably, this stockpile was hidden in a house located just 100 meters from the local police station.
The bust was not a coincidence. It followed a tip-off passed through intelligence channels, hinting at possible sabotage or communal disturbance during upcoming sensitive religious events like Muharram and the Kanwar Yatra. The timing and proximity have raised urgent questions about law enforcement awareness, surveillance, and oversight.
Ammo Trail Raises Red Flags
What makes the case even more complex is the nature of the ammunition recovered. Police sources confirmed to media outlets that the cartridges are legitimate in origin—typically distributed to licensed gun owners. Investigators are now probing how these made their way into the hands of someone operating outside the legal framework.
One line of inquiry suggests that third-party gun licenses might have been misused, or dummy owners created to procure large quantities without triggering red flags. “This is a major breach of law and order,” a senior official remarked, adding that the team is now focused on tracing the supply chain and potential loopholes in the licensing system.
Dubai, Pakistan and Wildlife Ties: A Bigger Picture?
Beyond illegal weapons, Salahuddin is now being viewed as a potential link in a transnational web. According to STF sources, he had contacts in Dubai and Pakistan, as revealed through phone data. These are reportedly not “routine numbers,” and are being treated as part of a serious international angle.
The STF has also identified his suspected role in wildlife trafficking, operating parallel to his alleged arms smuggling. With a similar arms seizure in West Bengal earlier, officials fear a more coordinated network spanning multiple states, if not international borders. This network may have used seemingly respectable fronts—like Salahuddin’s clinic—to mask illicit operations.
A Quiet Life, or a Well-Covered Front?
What adds a layer of irony to the case is the public image Salahuddin maintained. A man in his seventies, he ran a clinic, had a government schoolteacher for a wife, and daughters pursuing higher education—one in Norway and another in an engineering course in India. Yet investigators now suspect he may have operated a hub for arms and wildlife smuggling under this respectable exterior.
Despite being in a high-visibility location, he managed to avoid police attention for years. Local officers now admit they had casually observed suspicious visitors but never escalated the matter. This has led to a probe into potential administrative oversight or even internal collusion. Police believe Salahuddin may have bribed officials or that deliberate suppression of intelligence occurred to shield his activities.
Adding to the mystery, Salahuddin has reportedly been evasive in custody, citing health issues and providing misleading information—including naming deceased individuals. Authorities plan to seek extended custody to uncover his full network and potential accomplices.
The Malihabad case is no longer being treated as an isolated arms seizure. It is now a probe into how legitimate systems—gun licensing, local surveillance, and administrative controls—may have been exploited to run a covert and possibly coordinated operation hiding in plain sight.