‘Suspended J&K cop was used by Pak to obtain sensitive info’

NIA files chargesheet against suspended J&K DSP Devinder Singh, five others

JAMMU: The NIA on Monday filed a chargesheet against six people, including suspended Jammu and Kashmir police officer Devender Singh and a top Hizbul Mujahideen leader, for allegedly waging "war against India" with the help of Pakistan-based terrorists and members of the country's high commission in Delhi, officials said.

The 3,064-page chargesheet, filed in a Jammu court under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act and various sections of the Indian Penal Code, names self-styled commander of the Hizbul Mujahideen terror group Syed Naveed Mushtaq alias Naveed Babu and his alleged network of aides.

If all the charges are proved in the court, the accused can be punished with death or a life sentence.

The others named are Naveed Babu's brother Syed Irfan Ahmad as well as the group's alleged overground worker Irfan Shafi Mir, alleged accomplice Rafi Ahmad Rather and businessman Tanveer Ahmad

Wani, former president of the Line of Control Traders Association.

According to the National Investigation Agency, the accused were part of a deeprooted conspiracy hatched by the Pakistan-based Hizbul Mujahideen and Pakistani state agencies "to commit violent acts and to wage war against the Union of India".

Detailing the conspiracy, the NIA alleged that Deputy Superintendent of Police Singh, who is in a jail here, was "in touch with certain officials of Pakistan High Commission in New Delhi through secure social media platforms. Investigation revealed that he was being groomed by Pakistani officials for obtaining sensitive information".

It said in the chargesheet that the probe in the case has brought "on record that the Pakistani establishment has been devising all possible ways and means to fund, arm and sustain the terrorist activities of the banned terrorist organization Hizbul Mujahideen". The "so-called leadership" of the banned terror group, including its chief Syed Salahuddin, his deputy Amir Khan, operational head Khursheed

Mehmood and financial head Nazar Mehmood besides officials of the Pakistani establishment were extending support to Hizbul Mujahideen cadres based in Jammu and Kashmir, the chargesheet stated. It comprises 3,017 oral and documentary evidences, the officials said. Singh was arrested on January 11 this year along with Naveed Babu, Rather and Mir, an advocate, when their car was intercepted by Jammu and Kashmir police near Qazigund on the national highway connecting the Valley with the rest of the country. A search of the vehicle led to the recovery of an AK-47 rifle, three pistols and a cache of ammunition and explosives. The NIA took over the case on January 17.

The investigation found that Singh, in an apparent bid to shield Naveed Babu, had shifted him along with the advocate to Jammu and arranged safe shelter for them in the city in February last year. Singh used his own vehicle for the movement of the Hizbul Mujahideen terrorists and also assured them help in procuring weapons, the NIA alleged. It said Naveed Babu, a former police constable who deserted the force along with weapons, was responsible for several killings, including an attack on labourers and truck drivers after the abrogation of Article 370 in the erstwhile state of Jammu and Kashmir. The chargesheet said Naveed Babu made efforts to recruit gullible youths to join the Hizb and was also receiving funds from "LOC traders". It accused Wani of providing him funds with the help of other traders based in Pakistan occupied Kashmir.

Investigations revealed that the accused were obtaining weapons and ammunition from across the border with the help of arms smugglers and Singh. These weapons were later used for terrorist activities, it said.

Highlighting the role of Mir, who is alleged to be a double agent, the NIA said he had met top leadership of the terror outfit as well as Umar Cheema, Ahshan Chaudhary, Sohail Abbas and others of Pakistan's spy agency ISI.