The National Investigation Agency (NIA) suspects that the two alleged conduits of terror outfits, who were arrested in Jammu & Kashmir earlier this week, were involved in the killing of two policemen and as many civilians in Baramulla in June.
The two accused, Rashid Muzaffar Ganaie and Nasir Mir, are residents of Sopore in Baramulla where the civilians, Manzoor Ahmad Shalla and Bashir Ahmad, and constables Showkat Ahmad and Waseem Ahmad, were killed in an indiscriminate firing on June 12. Several others were injured in the incident.
The policemen were deployed to ensure the COVID-19 standard operating protocol when the terrorists struck.
Preliminary findings indicate that the accused were linked to those who carried out the attack. It is learnt that among the assailants was a Pakistani national, for whom a hunt has been launched.
The NIA has so far arrested 27 persons following the recent spate of killings by the terror outfits in J&K, as part of the conspiracy to thwart the Government’s move to extend domicile status of various categories of people and to promote industrial development in the Union Territory.
The terrorists had initially started targeting “non-locals” as part of their new strategy. Among the victims were vendors. “The killings perturbed the local population as a large number of migrant labourers work at the orchards, fields and shops as helpers. It seems such attacks have now stopped,” said an official privy to the developments.
The case being investigated by the NIA was registered on October 10. It alleges a conspiracy by outfits like Laskhar-e-Taiba, Jaish-e-Mohammed, Hizb-ul-Mujahideen, Al Badr and similar outfits and their affiliates such as the Resistance Front and the People Against Fascist Forces (PAFF) to carry out terror activities in J&K and major cities including Delhi.
