In a joint operation, a Jammu and Kashmir (J&K) special team and Bengaluru police arrested Talib Hussain, an alleged member of terror outfit Hizbul Mujahideen, from a residential locality in Okalipuram in Bengaluru on June 3.
The suspect was living with his family and working as a labourer in the city. A self-styled commander of the terror outfit, Tailb is wanted in connection with the targeted killing of Hindus in the Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir.
A team of Jammu and Kashmir police and 17 Rashtriya Rifles launched a joint operation and nabbed Talib, who was hiding in Bengaluru. According to the J&K police, Talib was a resident of Rashgwari in Kishtwar.
“Hussain joined militant ranks of the Hizb outfit in 2016. He remained active along with other militants of Kishtwar. He was instrumental in reviving militancy by way of recruiting youths in militancy. But later on, due to some squabble with other HM militants, he left the Hizb and remained at large,” the police said.
A police spokesman said the Kishtwar police worked on leads and obtained his whereabouts. “The police pre-empted his move to affect the revival of militancy in the area as he got arrested after dodging the police and other security agencies for a long time,” the police said.
The J&K police communicated with the Bengaluru police seeking support. The Srirampura police started recceing the area to keep tabs on Talib. The special team of police reached the city and stayed in a lodge at Majestic for a few days while monitoring the movements of Talib before he was picked up.
The Bengaluru police and officials of the internal security division are coordinating with their J&K counterparts to find out more details about Talib’s activities and his contacts in Bengaluru.
C.H. Pratap Reddy, Bengaluru Police Commissioner, said the State agencies and the city police were probing about Talib’s presence, his activities and network. Inquiries so far revealed that Talib stayed in a rented house on a mosque’s premises with his wife and three children from the last eight months. He worked as a labourer and also assisted the mosque committee with charity work, sources said. Talib was living under a different name and also had an Aadhaar card, as well as a phone with a SIM purchased at a local store. The police are now checking his activities and contacts to ascertain whether he had any subversive plans.
Karnataka Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai said, “It’s an ongoing process. The police will keep an eye on the movement of suspects, and the State police will extend all possible help.”
