Key conspirator in CRPF convoy attack killed
Fayaz Bukhari
SRINAGAR, Mar 11: General Officer Commanding of Srinagar based 15 Corps, Lt General Kanwal Jeet Singh Dhillon, today said that security forces have killed Jaish-e-Mohammad militants after last month’s Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) convoy attack so that such attacks are not repeated. Click here to watch video
Speaking to reporters at a hurriedly arranged press conference, Dhillon said that main focus after the attack was to eliminate the JeM militants. “Our main emphasis after the convoy attack was to eliminate the JeM leadership and we have been successful in that,” he said.
The GOC said that they succeeded in their efforts to prevent Pulwama type attack. “We have reasonably succeeded in eliminating JeM militants so that a Pulwama-type attack does not take place. The leadership of the JeM has been hit and hit deadly. We will continue it”, he said.
The Corps Commander said that in last three weeks troops have eliminated 21 militants including key conspirator of the attack, Mudasir Ahmad Khan. “In last 21 days, we have eliminated 18 terrorists and 14 are from JeM and 6 are main commanders. We have eliminated Mudasir Ahmad Khan, who was the main conspirator of the convoy attack”, he said.
The GOC said that they have killed a Pakistani militant in yesterday’s operation at Tral. “Along with him we killed Khalid of JeM from Pakistan. Search operation is going on at the encounter site”, he said.
Lt Gen Dhillon said that the operation against JeM will continue till it is wiped out. “Eight Pakistani and 10 local terrorists were killed so far since the attack. Operation against foreign terrorists and JeM will continue till we eliminate all of them”, he said.
CRPF Inspector General (Operations) in Jammu and Kashmir, Zulfiqar Hasan said Mudasir Ahmed Khan alias ‘Mohd Bhai’ was among the two militants killed in the encounter in Tral’s Pinglish area in Pulwama district. He, however, refused to term this as avenging the deaths in the February 14 strike.”We are peace keepers and we ensure that no one raises a gun against the country,” he said.
Inspector General of Police, Kashmir Range, Swayam Prakash Pani, said the identity of the second militant has not been ascertained yet. “We know that his code was ‘Khalid’. We are trying to find out his actual identity,” he said, adding that he is believed to be a Pakistani. “The killing of Khan is a significant dent to the JeM”, he said.
Pani said some material was found from their hideout and it will be shared with the National Investigation Agency (NIA) probing the Pulwama attack.
From evidence gathered so far, 23-year-old Khan a resident of Tral, an electrician with a graduate degree and a resident of Pulwama, arranged the vehicle and explosives used in the strike. He joined the JeM in 2017 as an Over Ground Worker and was later drawn into the outfit by Noor Mohammed Tantrey, alias ‘Noor Trali’, who is believed to have helped the group’s revival in the Kashmir valley.
But after Tantray was killed in December 2017, Khan disappeared from his home on January 14, 2018, and was active since then. After completing his graduation, Khan did a one-year diploma course as an electrician from an Industrial Training Institute (ITI).
The National Investigation Agency (NIA), which is probing the February 14 attack, had carried out searches at the residence of Khan on February 27.
The GOC said that militants are waiting on launch pads. “There are terrorists launch pads in PoK and militants are waiting for infiltration but we are ready for that.”
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