Excelsior Correspondent
JAMMU, Mar 8: A major attempt to revive militancy in the Chenab Valley of Jammu region has been foiled with the arrest of three Kishtwar-based militants including a teacher and a former contractual Lecturer from Bemina, Srinagar yesterday, where they had gone to fetch a consignment of arms, ammunition and explosives from Hizbul Mujahideen outfit for two surviving militants of the district.
The arms, ammunition and explosive material supplied to the militants on outskirts of Srinagar was to be transported to Kishtwar by three arrested militants to help Hizbul Mujahideen revive dying militancy in the Chenab Valley, where no militancy related incident has been reported for past quite some time.
While Doda district has been declared completely free of militancy, two militants each were reportedly present in heights of Kishtwar and Ramban districts, but were lying very low by not resorting to any kind of activity for several months as they were running short of weaponry and had no local support.
Police sources told the Excelsior that three new militants, who were arrested last night from Bemina in Srinagar, hadn’t figured in any kind of militancy-related incident earlier but had recently been lured by Mohammad Amin alias Jehangir, a Hizbul Mujahideen divisional commander and Riaz Ahmad alias Hazari, the only two surviving militants in Kishtwar district, to help revive militancy in the Chenab Valley.
The arrested militants have been identified as Reyaz Ahmad Wani, 26, son of Mohammad Ramzan Wani R/o Sounder, Dachan in Kishtwar, Ikhlaq Ahmad Khandey, 24, son of Ghulam Rasool Khandey R/o Tunder, Dachan in Kishtwar and Tauseef Ahmad Gundna, 25, son of Ghulam Nabi Gundroo, a resident of Kishtwar town.
Reyaz Ahmad Wani is a Rehbar-e-Taleem (ReT) teacher at village Sounder while Tauseef Ahmad Gundna was a contractual Lecturer in Government Higher Secondary School at Sounder, Dachan but his contract period had lapsed and not renewed yet for next year, sources said.
Police have so far recovered two pistols, two pistol magazines, 20 rounds, four grenades, one wireless set and packets of explosives from the possession of three arrested militants.
Preliminary investigations by police revealed that all three youths of Kishtwar had joined Hizbul Mujahideen outfit after being lured by Jehangir, the divisional commander of the outfit for Kishtwar district, who has been lying low but evading arrest for past several years. They had been motivated by Jehangir and started working for Hizbul Mujahideen.
Jehangir had deputed them to Srinagar to bring consignment of arms, ammunition and explosives from Hizbul Mujahideen cadre to Kishtwar. Sources said the militants had received the consignment of weaponry and were about to leave Srinagar for Kishtwar when they were caught by police. The consignment was seized from their possession.
All the three militants were being interrogated to ascertain identity of the militants, who had arranged weapons for them in Srinagar and location of Jehangir, who had motivated them to join militancy and bring weapons for the outfit in Kishtwar, where the Hizbul Mujahideen wanted to revive militancy.
When approached for comments, SSP Kishtwar Sandeep Wazir said they were in touch with their counterparts in Srinagar and a team of the District Police could leave for Kashmir to join interrogation of the arrested militants and obtain clues about locations of Jehangir and Riaz Ahmad for launching operations against them.
Sources said interrogation of three new militants was “very crucial and sensitive’’ for Kishtwar police as they not only reveal hideouts of Jehangir and Riaz, the only duo active in entire Kishtwar district, but also narrate plans of the militants including their suspected targets in the Chenab Valley.
Reportedly, the Hizbul Mujahideen was planning to hit some high-profile targets in the erstwhile Doda district, sources said.
This was after several years that fresh joining of the militancy has been reported from any part of erstwhile Doda district comprising Doda, Kishtwar and Ramban, where the militants once ruled the roost. However, following relentless operations against the militants, Doda district was completely rid of the militancy, while only two militants each were left in Kishtwar and Ramban districts but they too were not indulging in any kind of militant activity.
Admitting that joining of Hizbul Mujahideen outfit by three youth especially two of them educated with one of them working as teacher and another having served as Lecturer, sources didn’t rule out the possibility of some more youth having been lured into the militancy but said interrogation of the new militants would reveal the facts.
Meanwhile, a case FIR No. 41/2017 under Sections 7/25 Arms Act and 3/5 Explosive Substances Act has been registered against the three militants.
In the meantime, sources said security forces in South Kashmir are looking for a Swift car and its driver that came from Kupwara yesterday with 30 grenades and 3 AK-47 rifles and delivered it in Shopian area to Hizbul Mujahideen militant group headed by Zeenatul Islam.
They said that of late Hizbul Mujahideen has received large cashe of arms and ammunition in South Kashmir for the new recruits. They said that Hizbul Mujahideen is being strengthened in South Kashmir as it is getting key role in handling militancy in Kashmir.
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