Sanjeev Pargal
JAMMU, Aug 24: The disclosures made by Mohammad Naved Yakub, a Pakistani terrorist, before the National Investigating Agency (NIA), has brought to the fore serious security lapses on the National Highways and other important roads and towns as Naved confessed that he along with another Pakistani militant Abu Aseem had free run on the highway from Awantipora to Bari Brahamana and back between July 9 and 12 this year when pilgrimage to Amarnath ji shrine had begun and reached their hideout unchecked at any place carrying huge consignment of arms, ammunition and explosives in the truck.
Yakub was taken to Jaipuria Bewerages, the makers of Mirinda and other soft drinks at industrial area of Bari Brahamana and Sharma Dhaba on the National Highway, where they had food, by the NIA teams to identify the places, where they had stayed for eight to 10 hours, Sidhra on Narwal bypass, where they had night halt and some places on Jammu-Srinagar National Highway, where they had halt for tea and food.
Official sources told the Excelsior that Lashkar-e-Toiba (LeT) South Kashmir chief Abu Qasim and his deputy Abu Dujana had deputed Naved with Abu Aseem first on July 9 morning in a truck, driven by Khursheed Ahmad of Pulwama, who has now been arrested, to carry out the attack on security forces or Amarnath ji pilgrims at an “appropriate place’’. They had asked truck driver Khursheed Ahmad to drop the militants, where they asked, and leave the spot.
The militants boarded the truck at Awantipora in the morning of July 9, which was driven by Khursheed Ahmad Bhat alias Surya and had free run on entire Jammu-Srinagar National Highway followed by Jammu-Pathankot Highway before they reached Jaipuria Bewerages in industrial town of Bari Brahamana. The truck driver loaded Mirinda soft drinks in the vehicle, which he had to do for a company to make it a routine sortie.
“It took the truck driver eight to 10 hours to load the soft drinks during which the vehicle with arms and ammunition remained parked inside the factory. The truck driver along with the two Pakistani militants had bath in the factory and consumed some cold drinks before taking food at Sharma Dhaba on the National Highway,’’ sources said, adding on return journey, they had night halt at Sidhra near Narwal Bypass on the intervening night of July 10 and 11. They reached Srinagar on July 12 due to disruptions on the National Highway.
On way from Srinagar to Jammu, the truck also had night halt somewhere near Rhembal on the intervening night of July 9 and 10 and reached Bari Brahamana in the morning of July 10.
The disclosures made by Naved have been confirmed by the truck driver Surya before the NIA after which both of them were taken to the soft drink company, dhaba and other places on the highways to identify them, which they did. Sources said Surya had driven the Pakistani militants on their trip between July 9 and 19 and not on August 4 and 5 when they carried out the attack on the BSF convoy in the morning of August 5 at Narsu, Samroli in Udhampur district on Jammu-Srinagar National Highway. The truck driver, who had taken the militants from Kulgam to Narsu on August 4 and 5, is still absconding and a hunt was on to nab him. He was also a LeT operative like Surya. On August 4 and 5 also, the militants had travelled in the truck unchecked from Kulgam to Narsu with night halt between Patnitop and Kud.
Sources said Naved has disclosed that he and Abu Aseem didn’t strike anywhere on the Highways or any other sensitive place between July 9 to 12 as they didn’t find any appropriate place to target security forces or Amarnath ji pilgrims, the targets assigned to them, as their convoys were moving under very tight security arrangements.
Naved said they found the lone BSF bus during his second trip in which he was accompanied by Momin instead of Aseem at Narsu, Samroli and targeted it in the morning of August 5. Naved said it was Abu Qasim, who had decided to replace Aseem with Momin during their second run on the highway on August 4 and 5.
Sources said the arrested truck operator Khursheed Ahmad Bhat alias Surya had joined the Lashkar ranks after working as stone pelter for long time.
It may be mentioned here that both the times the militants travelled on the National Highway in trucks carrying arms and ammunition the Amarnath yatra had started and police was maintaining high alert following inputs that the militants could target the yatra.
According to sources, the NIA was also trying to identify and nab Aseem along with other Pakistani militants involved in the attack on whom cash rewards have already been announced.
Sources said Naved will make a confessional statement before a Magistrate here on Wednesday regarding the role of the terror outfit in carrying out strikes like the Udhampur attack.
Naved was produced before a Special NIA court here today amid tight security and later taken to Chief Judicial Magistrate where the investigating agency informed that the accused was willing to give a confessional statement, sources said.
Naved along with his accomplice Mohammed Noman alias Momin had carried out a terror strike on a BSF convoy on August 5 in Udhampur killing two personnel of the border guarding force. Momin was killed in retaliatory fire while Naved was foxed and nabbed by two villagers whom he wanted to kidnap.
Earlier, NIA, which had the custody of Naved till today, had informed the special court that the accused was being taken to CJM’s court for beginning the process of recording his confessional statement under 164 criminal procedure code.
Under the law, Naved was sent for two days of judicial custody after which he would be produced before a magistrate and his confessional statement would be written and videographed as well.
The accused is kept away from the probe agency for 48 hours for him to get an opportunity to rethink whether or not he wanted to give a confessional statement suo-moto. He would be produced before a Magistrate assigned by the Chief Judicial Magistrate on Wednesday.
The report of his lie detector test was expected soon and the same would be provided to the Magistrate who would be recording his confessional statement.
Naved was extensively questioned for over a fortnight by NIA and sleuths of intelligence agencies during which he identified the truck driver Khursheed Ahmed Bhat, who had since been arrested.
The Lashkar terrorist also provided a picture of Abu Qasim, terror outfit’s South Kashmir-based commander, on whom the agency has announced a cash reward of Rs 10 lakh to any information leading to his arrest.
NIA has released a photograph, which it had recovered during raids at various terror hideouts in Kashmir valley, of one of the accused identified as Abu Okasha, a resident of Khyber Paktunkhwa in Pakistan. The agency also announced a cash reward of Rs five lakh on information leading to his arrest.
A similar cash reward has been announced for the fourth accomplice Zhargham who infiltrated into India with Naved and others from Gulmarg sector in the Valley.
A resident of Faisalabad in Pakistan, Naved was earlier brought from Srinagar by the NIA team and was also taken to the spot of terror attack on highway at Narsu Nallah in Udhampur district.
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