Kashmiri engineer deported by UAE for being ‘ISIS sympathiser’

Majid Jahangir

Tribune News Service

Srinagar, August 19

A Kashmiri engineer who was recently deported to India from the United Arab Emirates (UAE) on suspicion of being an Islamic State sympathiser was handed over to the J&K Police for investigation.

Irfan Zargar, 36, a resident of Bemina in Srinagar, had gone missing from Dubai in April and was deported to India on August 14.

Irfan shifted to Dubai in November 2014 where he got a job in a telecom company.

“We received Irfan’s call from Jammu this morning. He said he has been handed over to the J&K Police,” Irfan’s mother Fareeda said. “His elder brother immediately left for Jammu,” she said.

The family said no case was registered against Irfan in Srinagar and they expected him home in the coming days.

“He is a religious boy and there is no case registered against him. We are sure he will be home soon,” said his uncle, Nazir Ahmed, a retired government employee. Relatives thronged Irfan’s Bemina residence after hearing that he has been handed over to the police. Irfan had last visited home in 2017.

The police said Irfan went missing from Dubai on April 28 and his cousin informed his family about it after two days.

“After about a month his brother went to Dubai and after a lot of delay, the Sharjah police station registered a missing report,” the police said.

During Irfan’s police custody in Dubai, he called his family in Srinagar and informed them he did not know where he was and who had confined him at an unknown place.

Security sources said he was detained in Dubai for his social media activities as he shared Islamic videos and uploaded pro-Islamic quotations. He also used to share videos on Facebook depicting the plight of Muslims around the globe, particularly Rohingya.

After he went missing, the issue was flagged by Peoples Democratic Party youth leader Waheed Parra on Twitter, seeking the intervention of External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj. She had promised help.

“He was subjected to intensive questioning for his appreciation of the Islamic State activities in Syria and Iraq,” security sources said.

After his questioning in Dubai, he was deported to India where the National Investigation Agency questioned him. It is likely that he may be released as nothing substantial has been proved against him.