NIA files chargesheet against suspended J-K DSP Devender Singh, five others for spreading terror

Mukesh Ranjan
Tribune News Service
New Delhi, July 6

The National Investigation Agency on Monday filed a chargesheet suspended Deputy Superintendent of Jammu and Kashmir Police Devender Singh and five others for alleged terror activities in the country, officials said---a development that comes after the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) granted the agency the permission to prosecute him under Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA).

The NIA said in its chargesheet that the suspects were accused under various sections of the IPC, UAPA and the Arms Act. On January 17, 2020, the agency had registered a case following an order by the MHA on the same day.

Besides Singh, the charge sheet also names banned Hizb-ul-Mujahideen commander Syed Naveed Mushtaq alias Naveed Babu as well as the group’s alleged over-ground worker Irfan Shafi Mir and its member Rafi Ahmad Rather. The other two named are Tanveer Ahmad Wani, a trader, and Naveed Babu’s brother Syed Irfan Ahmad, officials said.

Singh, who was arrested in January this year while ferrying two Hizb-ul-Mujahideen terrorists, is also alleged to have established contact with officials of the Pakistan High Commission through secure social media platforms, the NIA said in the charge sheet, adding that he was being “groomed by Pakistani officials for obtaining sensitive information.”

Singh, who was due for promotion, was suspended after he was caught red-handed by the J&K Police with terrorists and a case was registered against him. This case was then re-registered by the NIA a week later.

After filing the chargesheet, the NIA said in an official statement: “During the course of investigation, the accused persons were interrogated thoroughly and searches were conducted at 15 places in Kashmir Valley as well as in Jammu”.

In the charge sheet, the NIA said the accused were part of “a deep-rooted conspiracy hatched by Hizb-ul-Mujahideen and Pakistani state agencies to commit violent acts and to wage war against the Union of India”.

The NIA alleges that in February 2019, in order to shield Hizb-ul-Mujahideen commander Mushtaq from the heightened surveillance of security agencies, Singh along with Irfan Shafi Mir and Syed Irfan Ahmad, arranged safe shelter for him and his associate in Jammu.

“Accused Devender Singh used his own vehicle for the movement of Hizb-ul-Mujahideen terrorists and also assured them of help in procuring weapons,” it has charged, adding that further investigation brought on record that the Pakistani establishment has been “devising all possible ways and means to fund, arm and sustain the terrorist activities” Hizb-ul-Mujahideen.

Join Whatsapp Channel of The Tribune for latest updates.