NEW DELHI: The National Investigation Agency (NIA) on Thursday arrested two persons from Bihar’s Chapra district for allegedly hatching a conspiracy to carry out terror attacks in Jammu and Kashmir by supplying illegal arms and ammunition to Lashkar-e-Mustafa, a front organisation of Jaish-e-Mohammad.
NIA officials, who were aware of the development, said that those arrested have been identified as Arman Ali and Guddu Ansari and were allegedly providing arms and ammunition to the main accused in the case.
“Investigation has revealed that both the aforementioned arrested accused persons were co-conspirators and were involved in transportation of two separate consignments of illegal arms/ammunition from Bihar to Mohali and Ambala. The said weapons were further transported to the accused Hidayat Ullah Malik, self declared commander-in-chief of LeM in Jammu and Kashmir,” the NIA said.
In March this year, the NIA had taken over a case from Jammu Police against Malik who was accused of conspiring to carry out terror activities in Jammu.
Malik was arrested from Jammu on February 6 with a pistol and a grenade. The NIA also recovered three magazines and 28 rounds with other incriminating material after conducting searches at Malik’s premises.
According to NIA officials, Arman and Guddu had brought weapons from Bihar and handed over to Malik as part of the terror conspiracy.
The NIA’s investigation, so far, has suggested Lashkar-e-Mustafa had done reconnaissance of many security installations in Jammu and Delhi in 2018 and 2019 to carry out terror attacks. “He has been associated with other terror groups in past and has furthered subversive and terror activities in Kashmir valley. The terror group had also committed a daylight bank robbery in which Rs 60 lakh were looted from Jammu and Kashmir Bank, main branch Shopian in November 2020,” the NIA said in a statement after the arrest. (Agencies)
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