Police Bust Terror Funding, Recruitment Module In J&K’s Kupwara; 5 Held

Jammu and Kashmir’s Kupwara police on Thursday busted a ‘terror funding and recruitment module’ in north Kashmir’s Kupwara district and arrested five persons with pistols and weapons planning to carry out attacks in north Kashmir.

“A huge quantity of arms, ammunition, raw material to prepare IEDs and incriminating material have been recovered from all the apprehended individuals. We also recovered five pistols, ten Magazines, 49 pistol ammunition, two grenades and one IED,” said police. “It is a big success,” they said.

The police said a joint operation was launched by the Army and Kupwara police to nab one Bilal Ahmed Dar of the Cheerkote area of Kupwara district, after receiving inputs about the militant.

“We interrogated Bilal and found he, along with five others, from parts of North Kashmir were running a terror funding racket under a fake NGO namely ‘Islahi Falahi Relief Trust’ (IFRT) which claimed to provide monetary assistance to poor and needy families.”

“Bilal was actively involved in coordinating the funding for terror activities and aiding recruitment by organising ‘Ijtema’ meetings in different villages. He and other members of the NGO would try and lure young people into anti-national activities,” SSP Kupwara told reporters during a press conference.

“We have also got the names of others involved with Bilal in this terror module,” the SSP said.

He further said Pakistan-based handlers were coordinating the module to aid the operations of ‘Tehreek-e-ul Mujahideen Jammu & Kashmir’ (TuMJK) in North Kashmir.

According to the police, Bilal and his associates were receiving instructions from across the border from one Ghulam Rasool Shah of Hyhama Kupwara, a Pakistan-based terrorist handler. Another Mohammad Sultan Peer of Sulkoot Kupwara alias Tariq Peer, also a Pakistan-based terrorist handler, and a few others.

Police said the mastermind behind the recruitment and terror funding module has been identified as one Wahid Ahmed Bhatt alias Tauheed.

The group used to visit different villages and conduct events and gatherings under NGO funding and collect money by asking for charity and also scout for potential soft targets as recruits. “The accounts in the NGO’s name were being used to launder money for the TuMJK. The group was also actively collecting explosive materials known to be used in IEDs,” said police.