‘Contractor smuggled explosive devices from LoC’
*Plot to target religious places foiled
Excelsior Correspondent
JAMMU, Dec 27: Poonch Police and Army today foiled a major plot by the militants to trigger communal tension in Poonch district with arrest of three militants of newly floated JK Ghaznavi Force in Mendhar area who were planning to target religious places of minorities starting with famous temple of Ari. Six grenades have so far been recovered from their possession.
Apart from three arrests, two more persons gave been detained for questioning.
SSP Poonch Ramesh Angral told the Excelsior that the arrested militants were planning to carry out a grenade attack on a religious place at Ari in Mendhar at the behest of their Pakistani handler to disturb peace and communal amity in the district.
The ploy was revealed after Special Operations Group (SOG) of the local police along with troops of the 49 Rashtriya Rifles detained two brothers — Mustafa Iqbal Khan and Murtaza Iqbal of Galhuta village — from their vehicle bearing No. 8086 JK02BG near Basooni in Mendhar sector at around 8 pm yesterday. Click here to watch video
Their interrogation was conducted at the 49 Rashtriya Rifles Battalion headquarters, Basooni, and it was found that Mustafa had received a call from a Pakistani number and was directed to execute the grenade attack.
“On being questioned further, he admitted to have been tasked with throwing a grenade at a temple in Ari village. A video on how to use a grenade was also found in his phone,” Angral said, adding WhatsApp calls have been detected in mobile telephones of the militants in which their Pakistan based handler is asking them to target temples in Poonch district. They had selected Ari temple for the first attack.
The SSP said it came to light that Mustafa was involved in militant activities, and on his confession two of his associates — Mohammad Yaseen and Rayees Ahmad of Dabbi village of Balakote near the Line of Control (LoC) — were also apprehended.
The three were arrested later, while Murtaza Iqbal is still in custody and is being questioned.
Sources said father of one of the militants was working as a private contactor and was engaged in the construction of bunkers for people ahead of fencing. It is suspected that he might have brought grenades from the LoC for the militants. However, details will be revealed after sustained questioning of the militants.
“Vital clues have been obtained during questioning of the trio and searches were conducted in the house of Mustafa from where six grenades, some balloons with Pakistani marking and a few posters of hitherto unknown J&K Ghaznavi Force were recovered,” sources said.
They added that the arrested persons were in regular contact with their handlers in Pakistan who were instructing them to carry out terror strikes.
Terming the arrest of the trio as a “major success” for the security forces, sources said a terror plot to incite communal violence has been averted with their arrest.
“If they had succeeded in their designs, we would have faced a lot of problems because they were intending to harm the brotherhood and communal harmony in the district,” they added.
Asked about the link between the arrested persons and the December 13 encounter in Dogrian village of Poonch which left two Pakistani militants dead, sources said it is the follow-up of that very operation.
“We are investigating the route which they (the slain militants) used (to enter into this side from across the LoC) and the persons whom they had contacted. Whether these persons have any direct link with them is part of the investigation,” sources further said.
Jammu-based Army PRO Lt Col Devender Anand said that with the arrest of the militants, the security forces have unearthed a nexus of local militants who were involved in ferrying war-like stores and narcotics after smuggling them from across the border.
Other officials said some posters of Tehreek-ul-Mujahideen terror outfit were also recovered during the operations, threatening to intensify attacks on the security forces.
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