A joint team of the Indian Army, the Delhi Police Special Cell and the Forensic Science Laboratory carried out a controlled destruction of rocket launchers in Narela, on the northern outskirts of Delhi, on Tuesday. The weapons were recovered in connection with the arrest of two suspected terrorists in Manipur, according to sources familiar with the matter. The exercise brought to a close the physical handling of a set of rocket launchers that had travelled more than two thousand kilometres from the site of their original recovery in the northeast to the capital, where specialised units carried out their examination and eventual disposal.
The rocket launchers formed part of a larger cache of arms, ammunition and explosive material seized during a joint search operation in Manipur linked to the case. The weapons were brought to Delhi for examination and disposal, sources said, in a process that reflects how India’s security establishment typically handles sensitive recoveries with a bearing on national security, routing them through central forensic and military channels rather than disposing of them at the local level.
The Operation in Narela
Specialised teams from the Army, the Delhi Police Special Cell and the Forensic Science Laboratory carried out the disposal exercise in Narela on Tuesday. Narela, a semi industrial belt on Delhi’s northern periphery bordering Haryana, has periodically been used by security agencies for controlled demolitions and the destruction of hazardous or dangerous material owing to its relatively open terrain and distance from densely populated residential clusters.
The recovered rocket launchers were disposed of in a controlled manner as part of the operation, sources said. Such exercises typically follow a defined sequence, beginning with the transport of the recovered ordnance to a secured location, followed by the establishment of a safety cordon around the site, and finally the destruction of the weapons under the supervision of trained bomb disposal and munitions specialists from the Army, who are equipped to handle high risk military grade equipment that falls outside the routine capacity of civilian police units.
The disposal followed the completion of examination procedures on the seized weapons by the forensic and security teams involved. Sources indicated that the three agencies worked jointly through the length of the exercise, with the Special Cell coordinating the security and investigative aspects of the operation, the Forensic Science Laboratory handling the technical assessment of the recovered material, and the Army managing the actual destruction of the launchers.
Background: Arrests and Seizure in Manipur
The case originates from the arrest of two suspected terrorists in Manipur. Their arrest was followed by a joint search operation in the state, during which security personnel recovered a large quantity of arms, ammunition and explosive material connected to the case, sources said.
The rocket launchers destroyed in Delhi on Tuesday were among the items recovered during that search operation. Following the recovery, the weapons were transported to the national capital rather than being examined or disposed of within Manipur. The specific date of the search operation and the identities of the two arrested individuals have not been officially disclosed, and neither the Manipur Police nor central agencies have issued a formal statement naming the outfit the suspects are alleged to be affiliated with.
What Was Recovered
According to sources, the material seized during the Manipur search operation included rifles, hundreds of rounds of live ammunition, detonators and other explosive substances, in addition to the rocket launchers that were later destroyed in Delhi. The combination of firearms, bulk ammunition, detonators and explosive material points to a cache assembled to sustain armed activity over a period of time rather than a single isolated engagement, though no official inventory or press statement listing the exact quantity or make of each item has been released by the agencies involved.
Rocket launchers of the kind reportedly recovered in Manipur have surfaced in previous seizures across the state, often alongside country made mortars, sniper equipment and IEDs, reflecting the range of weaponry that has entered circulation in the region’s protracted conflict. The presence of detonators in the cache is particularly significant from an investigative standpoint, since it indicates the capacity to assemble improvised explosive devices in addition to using firearms and launchers, a combination security agencies have flagged repeatedly in cases emerging from the northeast.
Agencies Involved
The disposal exercise in Delhi involved three agencies working jointly. The Delhi Police Special Cell is the force’s specialised wing responsible for investigating terrorism, organised crime and other high profile cases in the capital, and frequently coordinates with central agencies on cases that cross state lines. The Forensic Science Laboratory is the government body tasked with the scientific examination of evidence, including weapons and explosives, in criminal investigations, and its assessment is often used to corroborate other lines of evidence gathered during an investigation. The Army’s involvement in such exercises typically covers the technical handling and safe destruction of military grade ordnance, including rocket launchers, which fall outside the routine disposal capacity of civilian police units and require trained personnel to neutralise safely.
No official statement detailing further specifics of the case, including the identities of the two suspects, the name of any militant or terror outfit they are allegedly linked to, or the agency formally leading the investigation, had been issued as of Tuesday. This report is based on information provided by sources familiar with the matter.
A Recurring Pattern in Manipur
Tuesday’s disposal in Delhi is not an isolated event when set against the broader security landscape in Manipur, where security forces have periodically recovered rocket launchers and related ordnance during search operations in recent years, in incidents separate from the case linked to this disposal.
In January 2025, security forces recovered six rockets along with one launcher, a country made mortar and sniper ammunition from the Loilamkot and Nalon areas under Henglep police station in Churachandpur district, according to police statements issued at the time. Two cadres of the proscribed KCP (PWG) outfit were arrested in a separate operation in Imphal East district around the same period.
In a further operation reported in November 2025, security forces recovered a long range rocket and approximately forty kilograms of explosives, along with rocket launching stands, from Gelmol village in Churachandpur district, and arrested a cadre of the KCP (PWG) during the same drive, police said.
Those earlier recoveries are distinct from the case connected to Tuesday’s disposal in Delhi. They are noted here only as context on the recurring recovery of rocket launchers and explosives during security operations in Manipur, a state that has experienced sustained ethnic and insurgent related violence in recent years, with security forces maintaining an extended presence of checkpoints and combing operations across its hill and valley districts.
Investigation Continues
Agencies handling the Manipur case have not issued a public statement on the current status of the investigation into the two arrested suspects or the origin of the weapons cache. Cases of this nature, involving military grade ordnance and suspected terrorist activity, are typically investigated by state police in coordination with central agencies, and can take weeks or months to conclude as authorities work to establish the full network behind the acquisition and movement of the weapons.
The Delhi disposal operation on Tuesday concluded the physical handling of the rocket launchers themselves, but the broader inquiry into the case, including how the weapons were sourced and whether other individuals are linked to the cache, remains with the investigating authorities. Agencies typically withhold operational details of ongoing investigations of this nature until formal charges are filed or a public statement is deemed appropriate, which may account for the limited official information available at this stage.
This is a developing story and will be updated as further verified details become available.
