The Nationwide Investigation Company (NIA) has taken custody of Faisal Muneer, a key suspect within the conspiracy to drop arms, ammunition and explosives in Jammu and Kashmir utilizing drones on the behest of Pakistan primarily based handlers, folks conversant in the event stated on Saturday.
Muneer, a resident of Jammu, “was questioned concerning the bigger conspiracy, his associates within the Valley, route taken for sending drones from Pakistan occupied Kashmir (POK), in addition to a few handler throughout the border, who works for Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) and Al-Badr and coordinates drone droppings,” stated a counterterrorism officer, who didn’t need to be named.
Muneer was taken into NIA custody on January 3 and will likely be questioned until Sunday.
Jammu and Kashmir police had busted a minimum of three terror modules in Rajouri and Jammu districts, which had allegedly acquired a number of consignments of rifles, grenades, explosive materials and bullets by means of drones.
Companies suspect that Muneer was offering logistical and monetary assist to gather the payloads dropped by means of drones in J&Ok and was in common contact with operatives primarily based in Pakistan in a minimum of one of many modules.
The federal anti-terror probe company is investigating half a dozen instances in J&Ok and Punjab associated to drone use by terror outfits in addition to Khalistani separatists to drop payloads in India for terrorist actions.
Indian border guards have seen a minimum of 300 drone intrusions in 2022 alone, virtually 3 times greater than in 2021, when 97 drone intrusions had been recorded, in accordance with Border Safety Pressure information.
Normally, it was discovered that low-cost drones, largely procured from China and assembled in Pakistan, had been crossing over to drop weapons and army grade explosive RDX, detonators, grenades, assembled and semi-assembled improvised explosive gadgets (IEDs) corresponding to tiffin and sticky bombs, moreover medicine, faux forex. and many others.
“Banned outfits corresponding to LeT, its offshoot The Resistance Entrance (TRF), Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM) in addition to Khalistani outfits backed by Pakistani spy company ISI are constantly utilizing these drones to create unrest within the area. The areas most popular to ship drones are Rajouri, Jammu, Kathua, R S Pura, Amritsar, Jalandhar, Gurdaspur, and many others,” stated a second counterterrorism official, who declined being named.
Union residence minister Amit Shah, in a number of conferences final 12 months, has requested the companies to make sure anti-drone measures are efficient and overground employee networks who acquire the payloads are unearthed and apprehended.