Alarmed by the surge in gun culture and deaths caused by celebratory firing at weddings and other functions, the Punjab Police have recommended the cancellation of about 7,000 arms licences to the state government.

Special DGP Arpit Shukla said licence-holders had been found indulging in glorification of weapons on social media, misusing them at weddings or elsewhere through celebratory fire or using the weapon in a crime.

A series of high-profile shootouts, including the killing of Youth Akali Dal leader Vicky Middukhera in Mohali in 2021 and singer and Congress leader Sidhu Moosewala in 2022, put Punjab’s gun culture into the spotlight. Earlier this year, a guest was killed during celebratory firing at the wedding of an NRI in Goraya. Six persons were booked under charges related to cu

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