Excelsior Correspondent
JAMMU, Dec 9: Within couple of days of the arrest of a notorious agent of Pakistan’s Inter-Ser-vices Intell-igence (ISI), police today arrested another militant of Hizbul Mujahideen outfit from Kishtwar town and was conducting searches to nab his more associates and effect recovery of weapons from him.
Arrested militant has been identified as Reyaz Ahmad son of Mohammad Ramzan, a resident of Sounder Dachchan in Kishtwar district, who was wanted by Kishtwar and Srinagar police in connection with separate First Information Reports (FIRs) registered against him.
SSP Kishtwar Rajinder Gupta told the Excelsior that Kishtwar police teams were hunting Reyaz Ahmad since July 1 when two militants of Hizbul Mujahideen were arrested and they had disclosed that Reyaz was also involved in the militant activities and was regularly changing his hideouts to evade the arrest.
On specific information about presence of Reyaz in Kishtwar town, police parties conducted raids at various places and finally apprehended him this morning from one of the hideouts, Gupta said, adding that the militant has been whisked away to a safer locations, where he was being subjected to sustained interrogation.
Sources said the militant was in possession of weapons, which were yet to be recovered. Efforts were on to recover the weapons and apprehend remaining associates of Reyaz Ahmad, they added.
Reyaz Ahmad was wanted in case FIR No. 182/2018 registered under Sections 120-B/121/121-A-RPC, 7/27 Arms Act, 4/5 Explosive Substances Act and 3/13/ U(P)A of police station Kishtwar and FIR No. 41/2017 under Section 7/25 Arms Act and 3/5 Explosive Act of Parimpora police station in Srinagar.
Police said Reyaz Ahmad was close associate of top Hizbul Mujahideen militant Mohammad Amin alias Jehangir, who was active in Kishtwar district for past several years.
Police parties have been conducting searches at various places for other associates of Reyaz Ahmad and effect recovery of weapons.
Only couple of days back, Kishtwar police in assistance with Military Intelligence and Special Operations Group (SOG) Jammu had nabbed a top Pakistan agent, Sehran Sheikh in Kishtwar, who had passed vital and strategic data including videos of Chenani-Nashri tunnel and security establishments to top ISI officials in Pakistan and militant commanders of Harkat-ul-Mujahideen.
Arrests of militant and ISI agents came close on the heels of killings of BJP leader Anil Parihar and his brother Ajit Parihar by the militants in Kishtwar town on November 1. Investigations in the killings have been handed over to the National Investigating Agency.