2 arrested, 3 detained for allegedly aiding LeT terrorist

At least two persons have been arrested and three others detained for allegedly helping Mohammed Naved Yakub, a Pakistani terrorist of Lashker-e-Taiba who had ambushed a BSF convoy near Udhampur on Wednesday.

The arrests followed interrogation by central security agencies of Yakub, who was caught alive by villagers after the Wednesday attack in which two BSF constables were killed.

Nearly a dozen people were being examined by the agencies based on details provided by Naved, a 23-year-old Pakistani national hailing from Faislabad in Pakistan.

So far, two people have been placed under arrest, fficial sources said, adding the first one was the truck driver who drove them to Samroli in Udhampur from Kulgam and other one was a bakery owner at Pulwama, who is alleged to be an over ground worker of Lashker-e-Taiba.

The three others who were being questioned at the highly-fortified interrogation centres and there was a possibility that they may be arrested, the sources said.

NIA, which is investigating the case as per directions of the Union Home Ministry, has placed a team of its officers led by Inspector General S K Singh in Srinagar.

A case under Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, Arms Act and various sections of Indian Penal Code has been registered against Naved and his accomplice who has been identified by him as Noman alias Momin.

Naved reached Srinagar late last night as he was brought to Kashmir by road because helicopters failed to take off due to bad weather.

The sources said Naved was being taken to all the places that he had mentioned during interrogation after he was overpowered by two of the three villagers he had taken as hostages. He along with Noman had on Wednesday ambushed a BSF convoy killing two constables. Noman was also killed in retaliatory fire.

After undergoing training in two different modules with Lashker-e-Taiba terror group, Naved along with three others had entered into India through Baramulla in North Kashmir area by cutting the fencing.

During interrogation, he said that he had stayed at Tangmarg and Baba Reshi and shifted their base to Awantipura-Pulwama in South Kashmir where he remained inside a cave located on a hill side.