NIA conduct searches in TRF terror recruitment case
The National Investigation Agency conducted searches at nearly a dozen places linked to The Resistance Front (TRF) terror group in Jammu and Kashmir on Thursday, days after its announced cash rewards of Rs.10 lakh each on information leading to the arrest of its four cadres.
The searches were carried out at multiple locations in Srinagar, Baramulla, Pulwama, Budgam and Kulgam districts in connection with a case related to radicalizing, recruiting and motivating the youth to effect violent activities by TRF commander Sajad Gul and others, a spokesperson of the National Investigation Agency (NIA) said.
The spokesperson said the locations searched included the house of active terrorist Basit Ahmad Dar, against whom the NIA had recently announced a reward of Rs.10 lakh.
Besides Dar of Redwani Payeen in Kulgam, the reward was declared against Gul of Srinagar and two Pakistani nationals — Saleem Rehmani alias ‘Abu Saad’ of Nawab Shah in Sindh and Saifullah Sajid Jatt of Shangamanga in Kasur.
The four terrorists are wanted by the NIA in connection with the case registered last year under various sections of the Indian Penal Code and the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act.
The NIA said the searches were carried out at six locations in Srinagar, two in Baramulla, one each in Awantipora (Pulwama), Budgam and Kulgam districts.
The spokesperson said Gul, along with his associate commanders of LeT based in Pakistan, has been recruiting individuals (Over Ground Workers) to do reconnaissance of pre-determined targets, coordinating and transporting weapons to support LeT and TRF.
During the searches, the spokesperson said, various incriminating materials such as digital devices, SIM cards, digital storage devices and documents were seized. The NIA said investigation into the case was underway.
Meanwhile, the National Investigation Agency (NIA) filed a supplementary charge sheet in a special court against two persons arrested in connection with the recovery of an improvised explosive device (IED) here last year.
The agency had filed the first charge sheet against three other accused in the case in December last year.
The supplementary charge sheet was filed in the NIA special court here against Fayaz Ahmad Khan of village Panzat-Qazigund (Anantnag) and Tawseef Ahmad Wani of Bangdara-Reshipora (Baramulla) under various sections of the Indian Penal Code and the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, a spokesperson of the agency said.
The official said the investigation has established that Khan and Wani are members of The Resistance Front (TRF). The duo, in connivance with their Pakistani handlers, were involved in spreading subversive activities in the Union Territory.
The case was initially registered at Bahu Fort Police Station in Jammu, following the recovery of the IED from accused Nadeem-ul-Haq from Bhatindi in June and was subsequently taken over by the NIA on July 19, 2021.
The spokesperson said Haq, a resident of Banihal in Ramban district, at the behest of his Pakistan-based handlers of The Resistance Front (TRF), a frontal organisation of the LeT, had attempted to execute an IED explosion in a public place in Jammu.
“Investigation has unearthed a larger conspiracy hatched by the Pakistani handlers of TRF, involved in recruitment and planning to activate a significant number of radicalized youth through social media platforms to target security personnel and public places with an intention to wage war against the government of India, the NIA said.
On December 22 last year, the NIA filed the first charge sheet in the NIA court against Haq, Banihal-resident Talib-ur-Rehman and Nadeem Ayoub Rather of Shopian district’s Checki-Choelend village.
