Police unearths ‘terror-cum-espionage racket’ in Jammu and Kashmir's Kishtwar

Local cleric ‘working’ for ISI arrested

Army’s Military Intelligence (MI) wing and Jammu and Kashmir police have busted a “terror-cum- espionage module” run by Pakistani spy agency Inter Service Intelligence, by arresting a local cleric from a masjid in Kishtwar district of Jammu region.

Reports said based on specific inputs from the MI, the police apprehended a 22-year-old cleric identified as Abdul Wahid from Madeenat-ul-Uloom Darasgah, Dadpeth in Kishtwar.

Wahid, a resident of Cherji Dool tehsil in Kishtwar district was staying with his wife Fatima and a son in a nearby madrassa, where he was working as Qari (teacher). “Investigations revealed that cleric was working for a lesser-known terror organisation, Kashmir Janbaaz Force (KJF), being controlled from Pakistan,” a senior police official said.

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During the questioning intelligence agencies found that Wahid used to pass information related to security forces to ISI and KJF, the police said.

Sources said Wahid was under scanner for his suspicious activities for some time and during the process it was unearthed that the cleric was passing sensitive information pertaining to military deployment and movement to his contacts in Pakistan.

“The cleric was using WhatsApp and other social media accounts to share sensitive info like photographs and video clips of security installation to ISI and members of one of the terror organisation in Pakistan,” they said.

Following inputs from the MI, sleuths of Jammu and Kashmir Police asked Wahid to appear for questioning at Kishtwar. During joint interrogation, he revealed that two years back, through Facebook, he came in contact with one Tayyab Farooqi alias Umar Khatab, who introduced himself as Amir (commander) KJF, the source said.

Besides espionage, the ISI had tasked him to motivate and brainwash youth and prepare them to join KJF, they said. For the last two years, ISI has been making concerted efforts to revive terror related activities in Chenab belt which includes Doda, Kishtwar and Bhaderwah.