Key handler nabbed in narco-terror module linked to LeT in Srinagar

The State Investigation Agency (SIA) of Jammu and Kashmir Police on Saturday arrested an alleged key handler in a narco-terror case linked to the proscribed Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) outfit, an official said.

He said the accused, Basharat Ali, a resident of Tad Karnah area of north Kashmir's Kupwara, was apprehended by a special team of SIA Kashmir from Bemina in Srinagar city after evading arrest for the last three years.

Giving details, the official said the case pertains to a Pakistan-sponsored narco-terror module of LeT, involved in smuggling of narcotics and weapons from across the border into the Karnah sector.

“The proceeds from the sale of narcotics were pumped in for sustaining terrorism in Jammu and Kashmir,” he said.

Ali is the fourth proclaimed absconder to be arrested in the case, and the SIA is hopeful to uncover further links in the case with his arrest, the official added.

This year, the SIA has conducted numerous operations aiming to dismantle the narco-terrorism network, leading to arrests of some key operatives of terror organisations, he asserted.