Weapon drop case: LeT ultra held in J&K

AN ARMS CONSIGNMENT WAS DROPPED BY A DRONE FROM PAKISTAN IN A JAMMU VILLAGE NEAR THE INTERNATIONAL BORDER

JAMMU: A 31-year-old terrorist affiliated to Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) was on Tuesday arrested in connection with the recent recovery of an arms consignment dropped by a drone from Pakistan in a Jammu village near the international border, police said.

The terrorist has confessed to being in touch with his handlers across the border, police said. He has been identified as Irfan Ahmead Bhat, son of Farooq Ahmead Bhat of Verinag area in south Kashmir’s Anantnag district.

A case under various sections of the Indian Penal Code, the Arms Act and the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act has been registered against him.

“Bhat stands arrested in connection with the case registered at police station Satwari on October 2. He has confessed that he is in touch with handlers across (the border) and is associated with the LeT outfit,” a police spokesperson said. “He had come here to receive the consignment of arms and ammunition (seized by police).”

The arms consignment — comprising an AK-47 assault rifle, a night vision device, three magazines and ammunition — wrapped in yellow polythene and tied with a nylon rope was dropped by a Pakistani drone at Sounjana village of Phallian Mandal, about 6km from the border, on the intervening night of October 2 and 3, the police said.

“It was a clear case of a Pakistani drone having dropped arms and ammunition for the overground workers (sympathisers of terrorists),” a police officer said, requesting anonymity.

There has been an increase in drone activities from Pakistan over the past one year, posing an additional challenge to security forces guarding the borders, according to police officers in the UT.