SRINAGAR: The Punjab Police on Thursday claimed to have foiled a major attempt to smuggle weapons into the Kashmir with the arrest of two J&K-based Lashkar-e-Toiba (LeT) operatives, reported The Tribune.

According to a report published by The Tribune, ten hand grenades, along with one AK-47 rifle with 2 magazines and 60 live cartridges, were seized from the suspected militants, identified as Aamir Hussain Wani (26) of Shopian, and Wasim Hassan Wani (27) also from Shopian district.

“The duo, actively involved in transporting automatic weapons and hand grenades from Punjab to the Kashmir Valley, were nabbed by the Pathankot police, who intercepted a truck (JK-03-C-7383) at a naka on the Amritsar-Jammu highway,” said the report.

The newspaper quoted DGP Dinkar Gupta as having said the search of the truck led to the recovery of the weapons and ammunition, and the accused, during the preliminary investigation, revealed that they had been directed to collect this weapons consignment from Punjab by Ishfaq Ahmed Dar alias Bashir Ahmed Khan, a former J&K constable. Currently an active militant of LeT in the Kashmir valley, Dar had absconded in 2017.

“The duo further disclosed that they had collected the consignment from two unknown persons early this morning at a pre-arranged location on Maqboolpura-Vallah road near the vegetable market in Amritsar. They had then concealed the consignment in the truck, which they had brought ostensibly for the purpose of loading vegetables and fruits from the mandi in Amritsar,” according to the DGP.

Aamir Hussain Wani has revealed that, on his earlier trips to Punjab in his truck, he had collected more than Rs 20 lakh of hawala money at the behest of his handlers — Ishfaq Ahmed Dar and Rameez Raja, who is currently lodged in a jail in J&K for his involvement in activities, reported The Tribune.

Aamir has also disclosed that, during previous trips to Amritsar, he had ferried two armed Hizbul Mujahideen and LeT militants from Punjab to the Valley. Incidentally, both the men are now dead, it said.

A case FIR under Section 25/54/59 Arms Act, 3/4/5 Explosive Substances Amendment Act 2001 and 13, 17, 18, 18-B, 20 Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act 1967, has been registered, and further investigations are on, the newspaper quoted the DGP as having said.

According to Gupta, the arrest of Aamir and Wasim had corroborated recent intelligence inputs indicating that Pak ISI has been pushing weapon consignments and infiltrating militants from across the border into Punjab, and further to Kashmir valley for carrying out terror activities.

Earlier, on April 25, 2020, Punjab Police had arrested another J&K based youth, namely Hilal Ahmed Wagay, who had come to collect drug money from Amritsar, said the report.

In that case also, Hilal Ahmed had used a truck for ferrying the drug money, reported The Tribune.

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