J-K police bust terror-financing racket, arrest five

Tribune News Service

Jammu, August 8 

The Special Operation Group (SOG) of J&K Police has busted a major terror-financing racket and arrested five persons who were in contact with their Pakistani handler Haroon alias Khubaib, a district commander of Laskhar-e-Toiba in Doda and had exfiltrated to Pakistan in 2007.

According to the police spokesperson, a team of SOG and Army apprehended a B.Sc Nursing student, Mubashir Farooq Batt of Sazan area in Doda district, who was studying in Kharar near Chandigarh, with a consignment of Rs 1.5 lakh Indian currency concealed in a tiffin box on July 19.

During investigation, the SOG Jammu apprehended five more suspects involved in the module. They have been identified as Toqeer Ahmad Batt, Asif Batt (surrendered terrorist and ex-SPO in J&K Police), Khalid Latief Batt (a contractor by profession), Gazi Iqbal, (works in a chicken shop at Jammu), and Tariq Hussain Mir (Karyana shop owner), all residents of Doda district.  

The police spokesperson claimed that they have admitted to their involvement in the case. “The accused were in contact with Pakistani handler Haroon. They were tasked to identify gullible youth for recruitment in terror ranks, providing logistics support and strengthening LeT cadre, sharing information about presence of security forces and their important locations to Pak handlers, transportation of arms and ammunition from one location to another and distributing money among the families of active and deceased terrorists,” the spokesperson said.

It has surfaced that they received money amounting to Rs 12,19,704 through different means and were also instrumental in recruiting two LeT militants in Doda region.

During interrogation of a suspect, Mohd Irfan Khan of Bijarni, Doda, it was revealed that he along with two associates Gazi Iqbal and Amir Batt hoisted Pakistani flag at Lal Draman area as they were tasked by Haroon for this.

On August 5, on the disclosure of Tariq Hussain Mir, the SOG team recovered three more tiffin boxes from his house, including Indian currency Rs 40,700 which he received as consignment on different occasions from Pak handlers as part of this module.

“It also came to fore that the involvement of four accused from Kashmir has surfaced. Moreover, the module has its links in other parts of the country,” the spokesperson said.