SRINAGAR: The Jammu and Kashmir Police have arrested Kashmiri Pandit activist Rakesh Handoo, alias Bunty, from Faridabad in Haryana in connection with allegations that he circulated threatening messages targeting Kashmiri Pandit employees recruited under the Prime Minister’s Rehabilitation Package and other migrant workers in the Valley.
Handoo was arrested on October 17 by a team of Baramulla Police in connection with FIR No 151/2026 registered at Baramulla police station. The case reportedly invokes Section 66F, relating to cyberterrorism, and Section 84C of the Information Technology Act. Police have also said that he has been booked under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA).
According to reports citing investigators, the case followed a complaint by Rohit Raina, a PM Package employee posted in Baramulla. Police allege that Handoo circulated and amplified digital threat letters purportedly issued by a militant outfit identifying itself as the United Liberation Council (ULC). The material allegedly targeted minority employees and migrant workers and contained personal information about some of those named.
Investigators had reportedly asked Handoo to appear for questioning in Baramulla in September. He was arrested after he failed to appear, according to police accounts reported by the media. Handoo had reportedly cited security concerns about travelling to Kashmir and sought to participate in the investigation through video conferencing.
Inspector General of Police Sujit Kumar has said that investigators had gathered substantial clues regarding Handoo’s alleged involvement. The precise evidence against him, the specific provisions invoked under the UAPA and the circumstances surrounding the alleged circulation of the material will be subject to the investigation and judicial proceedings.
The arrest is significant because Handoo had himself been publicly raising concerns about threats against PM Package employees, demanding a security audit, an investigation into an alleged leak of their personal information and the provision of secure accommodation for those considered vulnerable.
In a statement on September 10, Handoo described a fresh threat communication featuring photographs of protesting employees and an image of an AK-47 as deeply alarming. Speaking on behalf of affected employees, he had urged the police and security agencies to identify those responsible and assess the threat to the employees whose photographs appeared in the material.
“This is not merely a threat on paper,” he had said, warning that the circulation of photographs alongside claims of access to employees’ whereabouts, families and daily activities raised serious questions about their safety and the possible misuse of personal information.
He had also called for an investigation into how sensitive information, including phone numbers, addresses, family details and movements, had allegedly become available to those issuing the threats.
“If individuals with terror links are claiming to possess phone numbers, addresses, family details, movements and other personal information of employees, the source of this information must be investigated,” he had said.
Handoo had urged the administration to conduct an immediate security assessment, register cases under relevant provisions of law and expedite the allotment of secure transit accommodation to employees living in vulnerable locations.
“The government must urgently assess the threat perception of these employees and take whatever security measures are necessary to protect them,” he had said, arguing that authorities should act preventively rather than wait for an attack.
He had appealed to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Union Home Minister Amit Shah, Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha, the Director General of Police and senior security officials to intervene. He had also linked the issue to the wider question of the return and rehabilitation of displaced Kashmiri Pandit families, arguing that persistent insecurity could undermine confidence in the process.
The case emerged after a series of purported threat letters circulated on social media in August, naming Kashmiri Pandit employees and, in some instances, reportedly disclosing personal details. One communication attributed to the ULC warned employees against continuing their work in the Valley.
The authenticity of the threatening material was not independently established in the initial reports. The circulation nevertheless triggered serious concern among employees and their families, with hundreds of PM Package employees reportedly placed on administrative leave and asked to stay away from their workplaces for nearly three weeks.
The employees had sought stronger security arrangements at workplaces and residences, protection during travel and secure accommodation. The alleged appearance of personal details in the communications also prompted demands for an inquiry into a possible breach of confidential service information.
The PM Package was introduced to facilitate the return and rehabilitation of displaced Kashmiri Pandits through government employment. Around 6,000 members of the community have been recruited under the programme, according to published reports.
The employees’ security concerns have remained a contentious issue, particularly since targeted killings in 2022 prompted prolonged protests by PM Package staff seeking relocation to Jammu. The government did not agree to a blanket transfer to Jammu, but employees were moved to what authorities described as safer locations in Srinagar and other parts of the Valley.
Handoo’s arrest has brought the focus onto the origin and circulation of the threatening communications, including whether the material was merely shared, altered or otherwise amplified, and what evidence investigators have gathered to establish his alleged role.
