The National Investigation Agency (NIA) has taken over the probe into the arrest of Jammu and Kashmir Deputy Superintendent of Police Davinder Singh for "ferrying" Hizbul Mujahideen militants.
After the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) issued the order of transferring the probe, the NIA re-registered the case. This is the first case registered by NIA this year. Sources said Singh and other arrested persons are likely to be shifted to Delhi soon.
Singh along with Naveed Babu, self-styled district commander of banned Hizbul Mujahideen, a new recruit Atif and a lawyer Irfan Mir were arrested earlier this month allegedly with arms and ammunition while they were traveling in a car near Qazigund in Kashmir. J&K Police had registered a case and started investigations.
NIA investigators were already present when Singh, who was part of the anti-sabotage team in Srinagar airport before his suspension, and others were questioned by J&K Police.
Singh's arrest also revived memories of a letter written by Parliament attack case convict Afzal Guru who claimed that he had ferried one of the terrorists who targeted Parliament to Delhi on the instructions of the police officer.
On Friday, former Congress president Rahul Gandhi claimed that the handing over of the case to NIA was to "silence" Singh.
"The best way to silence Terrorist DSP Davinder is to hand the case to the NIA. The NIA is headed by another Modi - YK, who investigated the Gujarat riots and Haren Pandya’s assassination. In YK’s care, the case is as good as dead. Who Wants Terrorist Davinder Silenced? And why?" he tweeted.
Congress is also seeking a re-investigation into the February 2019 Pulwama terrorist attack and Singh's role in it as he had been posted in the district as DySP at the time.
(Published 18 January 2020, 04:40 IST)
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