LeT terror network busted in Jammu; 7 held, arms and ammunition seized

Jammu, Jul 18 (PTI) A Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) terror network was unmasked and seven members of the outfit were arrested in Jammu and Rajouri districts, police said on Monday.

They said most of terror cases in Jammu province have been solved with the busting of the three LeT modules in two districts. “We have busted three terror modules of LeT which were running on instructions from across the border. Seven members of the terror network have been arrested. This has given a setback to the LeT in Jammu,” Additional Director General of Police (ADGP), Jammu division, Mukesh Singh told a press conference here.

Two modules were busted in Rajouri district and four members of the LeT were arrested. One module was busted in Jammu district and three LeT members were nabbed, he added. A large cache of arms, ammunition and explosives were seized, Singh said. The LeT module busted in Jammu was in operation for over two years in the Khatika Talab area of the city. It was involved in collection and ferrying of weapons and explosives being dropped via drones from the Pakistani side along the International Border, he said.

It was being operated by one Faisal Muneer of Khatika Talab, who was being directed by LeT terrorist Bashir of Doda, currently in Pakistan, and another terrorist code named Albert, the police official said.

He said majority of the terror-related cases have been solved with the busting of the LeT network in the two districts. These included 15 drone-related and six terror-related cases, he added.

In reply to a question about the modules’ involvement in the Katra bus blast case, Singh said that matter is under investigation. To another question about any further breakthrough in the arrest of LeT terrorist Talib Hussain, who used to be a BJP functionary, he said investigation is on.

The Lashkar-e-Taiba module operating in Jammu was involved in receiving and ferrying huge consignments of weapons and explosives dropped by 15 drone sorties in border areas of the city from the Pakistan side, Singh said.

The investigation into weapons’ dropping from drones in Jammu, Samba and Kathua district led to arrest of one Habib of Hariya Chak in Kathua, he said. During questioning, Habib admitted his role as a receiver of multiple consignments of arms and ammunitions dropped through drones. He also said he is part of a terror network and was working on the directions of Faisal Muneer, the ADGP said.

The consignments received by Habib were carried to Jammu by him and delivered to different persons at different locations on the directions of Muneer, he said.

After these disclosures, Munir was picked up and questioned, following which he accepted his link with Pakistan-based handlers and his involvement in the terror nexus, Singh said.

Muneer disclosed that he was in touch with these handlers for more than two and half years and had received 15 consignments dropped by drones at multiple locations in Samba and Kathua, including Manyari, Mawa, Hari-e-Chak, the police official said.

He delivered these consignments at different locations in Jammu and also in the Kashmir Valley on the directions of Pakistani handlers, Singh said. He said Muneer was involved in the HSH school terror case some years ago and was currently out on bail.

On Muneer’s revelations, one AK 46 rifle, two AK magazines, 60 AK rounds, five pistols, 15 pistol magazines, 100 pistol rounds, two pistol silencers, eight grenades and a weighing machine besides weapon cleaning accessories were seized from his residence, Singh said.

He said one more accused Miayan Sohail of Kathua was also arrested in the case and the involvement of more persons in this network is suspected and investigation is going on. Asked whether terrorist modules were planning targeted killings, the ADGP said the recovery of silencers reflects such a design.

He said the majority of the weapons and explosives airdropped through drones 15 times in border areas in the last two years have been recovered.

In Rajouri district, Talib Hussain Shah alais Abu Ahmad Haider Shah of Draj-Kotranka, who was LeT commander for the Rajouri area and who was instrumental in almost all major terrorist activities and incidents in the Pir Panjal area over the past three years, was arrested along with his three associates, Singh said.

Shah was tasked to carry out terror attacks on security forces, minority community and prominent political figures in the area, he said.

Shah and his associates have been found to be involved in five criminal and terrorism cases, Singh said.

After his arrest by police and on subsequent disclosures, three UBGL grenades, one AK 47 rifle, four AK 47 magazines (containing 120 armour piercing rounds), two pistols, five pistol magazines, one Glock pistol silencer, 49 Chinese pistol rounds, one 2 kg IED of 2 kg, one 5 kg IED, five remote IEDs and four pressure mines were seized, he said.

Investigation brought to fore that Shah was involved in five major incidents of drone dropping-collection wherein he received arms, ammunition, explosives and Indian currency from Pakistan, the ADGP said.

Moreover, Shah received two groups of terrorists who were transported from Kashmir to Rajouri by his associates Mohmmad Shabir of Draj and Faisal Ahmed of Pulwama, who was apprehended along with Shah, he said.

Two other terrorist associates are still active in higher reaches of Pir Panjal, Singh said, adding efforts are on to arrest or neutralise them. With the arrest of Shah and his associates, the Targain murder case, Kotranka blast case, firing on one Ranjeet Singh, Anus jhuggi grenade and Shahpur grenade cases have been solved, he said.

“Arrest of Shah and his associates is a major blow to the terror outfit LeT,” the police officer said. Altaf Hussain Shah, who has running another LeT module in Rajouri, was also arrested, he said. This LeT operative has been found involved in a grenade throwing case on the residence of BJP functionary Jasbir Singh of Khandli, Singh said.

In that incident, a child, Veer Singh aged two years, had lost his life, he added. The attack was carried out by Altaf Shah on the instructions of Pakistan-based handler Mohd Qasim alais Suleiman of Mahore, currently in PoK, Singh said.

All these operations were possible only due to the active support and timely intelligence of the local people of the district, he said.