Sanjeev Pargal
JAMMU, Aug 11: The National Investigating Agency (NIA) today formally took over investigations in Narsu, Samroli terror attack and secured 14 days remand of Pakistani militant Mohammad Naved Yaqub from the court for interrogation even as the Agency proposed to operate from four places simultaneously in Jammu and Kashmir to conduct raids and apprehend as many contacts as possible during remand of the militant.
NIA Director General Sharad Kumar is visiting Jammu tomorrow to personally join interrogation of Naved along with Chief Investigating Officer Atul Goel, SSP NIA, who has been camping here since August 6, a day after the attack when the Union Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) had ordered handing over of investigations in the terror attack to the NIA.
Official sources told the Excelsior that the NIA proposed to open four camp offices at Jammu, Srinagar, Udhampur and Anantnag after the arrival of 20 officers from New Delhi, whose requisition has already been sought, to simultaneously operate from the four places and conduct raids within no time whenever required to arrest/detain the contacts of Naved.
“The Jammu and Kashmir Police will assist the NIA at all four offices. Director General of Police (DGP) K Rajendra is understood to have issued necessary directions to police chiefs of all four districts to extend all possible assistance to the NIA in investigations of the case and arrest of the associates/harbourers of Naved,” sources said.
Sources said the NIA wants to hold expeditious interrogation as it would get only 15 days remand of Naved. Six days remand taken by police on the evening of August 5 from Chenani will not be counted in 14 days as the NIA took custody of Naved from police formally today.
“The NIA has taken custody of Naved including case diary, his physical possession, weapons recovered from Naved and his slain associate Momen and other related documents,” sources said.
The NIA has already appointed Atul Goel, who had served as SSP Jammu and Kathua before proceeding on deputation to the NIA, as Chief Investigating Officer of the case in view of his investigation skills and handling crucial cases in the NIA.
Sources said so far involvement of militants on this side of the tunnel hasn’t surfaced in the attack and all contact/harbourers of Naved and Momen were confined to the Kashmir valley, mostly South Kashmir.
Eight contacts of Naved, who had sheltered him and transported him from one place to another during his nearly two months stay in the Valley after infiltration from Pakistan through Kupwara sector, had already been arrested from South Kashmir. However, a businessman, who had paid Rs 5 lakh worth terror fund to Abu Dujana, the deputy chief of the LeT for South Kashmir and Naved’s main handler, Abu Qasim, LeT chief for South Kashmir, were still at large.
In view of importance of the case as Naved was the only Pakistani militant to be captured alive after 26/11/2008 arrest of Ajmal Kasab following Mumbai attacks, Director General of NIA Sharad Kumar is personally visiting Jammu tomorrow to join questioning of the Pakistani militant and give direction to his teams in the probe. Kumar was expected to stay in Jammu for couple of days before returning to New Delhi.
Sources said Kumar has called upon the NIA team to go for scientific investigations in the case. During his visit, the NIA chief will also visit Narsu, Samroli in Udhampur district on Jammu-Srinagar National Highway to examine the spot and meet eye-witnesses.
Meanwhile, a special court in Jammu handed over Naved’s custody to the NIA for 14 days.
The Special NIA Judge YP Kotwal was requested to open the court at 7 this morning to avoid any rush following apprehensions that the terrorist, in his early 20s, could be eliminated by Lashkar-e-Toiba to destroy evidence of Pakistani involvement in the terror attack.
The militant, a resident of Faislabad in Pakistan, was produced before the court under tight security.
NIA, which took over the case last week, has booked him under various Sections of the Indian Penal Code for waging war against the nation, besides provisions of Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, Arms Act, murder and attempt to murder.
NIA and Jammu and Kashmir Police have been questioning several persons arrested/detained after Naved was caught by some villagers whom he had taken hostage.
Sources said sustained questioning of Naved was required as he was changing statements frequently and had given four different accounts of the route he and his accomplices took to infiltrate into India before settling for Kupwara.
Naved, who has undergone two modules of training with LeT, is being considered a hardened militant who is trying to confuse his interrogators, a tactic apparently aimed at buying time for his other accomplices, who were part of the group that had sneaked into India and are missing, to slip away, the sources said.
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