New Delhi, Feb 4 (IANS): In a major breakthrough in the Hizbul Mujahideen narco terror case, the National Investigation Agency (NIA) recovered Rs 20 lakh and 130 9mm live rounds during the searches it carried out on the premises of a hawala operator in Punjab, officials said on Thursday.

An NIA spokesperson said that the agency conducted searches in Amritsar and Gurdaspur at the premises of suspect Manpreet Singh, a close associate of charge-sheeted accused Ranjit Singh aka Cheetah and Iqbal Singh aka Shera in connection with its investigation.

The case relates to arrest of Hilal Ahmad Shergojri, an Over Ground Worker of Hizbul and then outfit commander Riyaz Ahmed Naikoo's close associate, who had come to Amritsar to collect the funds to further the terrorist activities in Jammu and Kashmir.

The Punjab Police had seized Rs 29 lakh along with a Tata truck from the accused on April 25 last year.

The case was re-registered by NIA on May 8 last year. NIA has filed chargesheets against 11 accused persons in the Special NIA Court, Mohali in the case.

"During investigation, it was revealed that Manpreet Singh, a hawala operator, had collected heroin, drug proceeds and weapons and transported them in his i20 and Verna car as per directions of accused Ranjit and Iqbal," the NIA official said.

The official said that Manpreet Singh delivered the drugs proceeds to the tune of Rs 35 lakh and weapons to the charge-sheeted accused Bikram Singh aka Vicky, relative of Ranjit Singh in March last year.

"During searches conducted today, Rs 20 lakh, 130 live rounds of 9 mm, mobile phones, pen drive, one bunch of polythene bags used for packing heroin, a Hyundai Verna car, a two wheeler, documents related to properties, and other incriminating documents have been seized from the house of the suspect," the official said.