Excelsior Correspondent
JAMMU, May 13: Police today foiled a major attempt to revive militancy in Chenab Valley, which had been reduced to negligible during the past few years, by arresting five militants, who had developed links in Pakistan as well as with Lashkar-e-Toiba (LeT) commanders in the Kashmir valley.
They were instrumental in attack on Tanta (Kahara) police post under the jurisdiction of Gandoh police station in Doda district in which an SPO was killed and another injured seriously on the intervening night of May 7 and 8.
Addressing a press conference here, IGP Jammu Zone Dr SD Singh Jamwal accompanied by DIG Doda-Ramban range Nissar Ahmad and SSP Doda Mohammad Shabir, said the LeT module had been trying to revive militancy in the Chenab valley.
A total of five persons including an SPO and a former Territorial Army personnel have been arrested, he added.
The module was working to revive militancy in the Doda- Kishtwar-Ramban region.
Jamwal said that the arrests were made by a Special Investigation Team (SIT) formed after the attack on a police post in Doda on May 8, in which one Special Police Officer (SPO) was killed and another injured. The SIT was headed by Additional SP Bhaderwah Shahzad Salaria.
Giving details, the IGP said that based on intelligence inputs the SIT had picked up some suspects and subsequently apprehended Abdul Rashid Harga alias Abdullah, a resident of Tanta in Doda district.
Rashid had been an active member of LeT between 2001 and 2008 and had later surrendered. He was again arrested in 2013 and was released on bail in 2016.
After sustained interrogation, Rashid confessed to his involvement in the (Doda) firing incident and disclosed the names of his two associates — his younger brother Showket Ali and Akhtar Magrey of Tanta.
Following their interrogation, four more persons — Bashir Ahmed, who was earlier part of Territorial Army, his nephew and SPO Altaf Ahmed, Shafqat Hussain and Hafiz — were arrested.
An AK-47 rifle and three magazines and ammunition have been recovered from them, the IGP said.
He said that Rashid had been in contact with Bashir Ahmed of Bangraw-Gandoh, who was earlier working in the 139 Territorial Army Battalion in Thathri.
Bashir had asked his nephew Altaf Ahmed, who was working as an SPO in the police department in Doda district, to arrange a weapon.
The SPO had then stolen one AK-47 rifle and ammunition from the District Police Lines in January this year. A case in connection with the weapon theft was registered at Doda police station.
The IGP claimed that Rashid was in direct communication with his Pakistani handler, Mohammad Amin alias Khubeb alias Haroon alias Pinna of the LeT.
He said that Rashid, Akhtar and Shokat, on the direction of Khubeb, had been enticing youths of Tanta area to join the militancy.
The police officer said that Rashid had been regularly conducting meetings in various areas of the Chenab valley and motivating former militants and those who had surrendered.
On the direction of Khubaib and commanders of Valley based militant organization, mainly the Lashkar-e-Toiba, which was asking Harga to activate militancy in erstwhile Doda district. Abdul Rashid Harga alias Abdullah activated his newly recruited grid to keep vigil on the movement of security forces and police pickets in remote hilly areas of Gandoh belt and planned to attack the security forces.
The Jammu police chief said that on May 7, Abdullah conducted recce of the police picket Tanta and got the information of presence of only two to three men at the Post. He then directed his associates to reach in the forest area near the post.
On the intervening night of May 7-8, they attacked police picket Tanta (Kahara) district Doda in which 2 SPOs namely Mohammad Younus and Kikkar Singh were grievously injured.
Younis later succumbed to the injuries at GMCH Jammu. “After attacking the post accused tried to set ablaze the Police Post. However, due to quick reaction of the injured SPOs they fled from the spot taking the advantage of the darkness,” said the IGP.
It was also found that Abdullah, Akhter and Shokat on the direction of Khubbeb alias Amin Butt were enticing the youths of Tanta area to join the militancy.
Abdullah on VOIP calls was also getting the young generation to speak to Khubbeb and other motivators of LeT outfits across the border for joining militancy.
The IGP, however, said that with the arrest of these accused, recovery of weapon and busting of LeT module, Tanta Police Post attack by the LeT has also been worked out by the SIT, which was headed by Additional SP Bhaderwah Shahzad Salaria and comprised SDPO Gandoh Sunny Gupta, Inspector Manjeet Singh and Inspector Tahir Yousaf.
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