JOIN USNIA investigators on Wednesday said they have recovered a Chinese wireless set from the car used by the four terrorists to reach the Pathankot Air Force base.
The data in the set was found deleted but it is being sent to CFSL/NTRO for retrieving, an official spokesperson said.
Interestingly, the recovered set is similar to a wireless recovered from the site of terror attack in Samba Army camp in Jammu & Kashmir last year. The NIA teams had on Tuesday visited Samba and Kathua to ascertain the similarities in the terror attacks.
Suspicions
Sources said investigation into terrorists using the smugglers’ network is still on.
They suspect that the Gurdaspur SP could be part of smugglers network and had inadvertently helped the terrorists in entering the country.
Though there was no official word on this, sources said investigators are looking into whether the SP used to receive jewellery or diamonds as remuneration for helping smugglers and did Rajeshwar Verma, SP’s friend and a jeweller, accompany him to check whether these were original or not.
The NIA has continued questioning of SP Salwinder Singh for the third consecutive day on Wednesday, as there were still gaps in his version about his abduction by terrorists. Singh’s cook Madan Gopal also accompanied them on the fateful day.
According to the SP, he was returning from Panj Peer Dargah in Punjab when his vehicle was waylaid and abducted by the terrorists.
While Singh and Gopal were released first, the terrorists took Verma with them. Investigators have found discrepancies in the statements of Singh in comparison to others.
NIA efforts
Taking forward the probe, the NIA recreated the route taken by terrorists from the point of abduction of police officer and to the Air Force Base.
“The NIA teams are collecting CCTV footage on the route taken by terrorists to the air base. The NIA teams with the Punjab Police and local villagers are carrying out searches in nearby villages on the route taken by terrorists for evidence left behind by terrorists like clothes, electronic devices etc,” a senior officer said.
The investigators have summoned Gopal and the caretaker of the shrine Somraj for examination on Thursday.