Jaish-e-Mohammad Chief Maulana Masood Azhar made prime accused in the Pulwama terror attack case

Charges filed against 19 accused including 7 terrorists killed so far

The National Investigation Agency (NIA), probing the ‘barbaric’ Pulwama terror attack case, Tuesday named Jaish-e- Mohammad Chief Maulana Masood Azhar as prime accused along with 18 others in its bulky 13,800-page charge sheet, filed before the special NIA court in Jammu on Tuesday.

40 jawans of the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) had attained martyrdom on February 14, 2019, after a suicide bomber had rammed his explosive-laden car into a CRPF convoy near Lethpora in Pulwama.

The main accused Mohammad Umar Farooq, a Pakistani national, had visited “Afghanistan for explosives training in 2016-17.”

NIA also claimed, the JeM leadership had also planned to carry out another suicide attack which got averted due to Balakot strikes and due to killing of main conspirator Mohd. Umar Farooq by the security forces.

NIA investigation has also revealed,” Umar Farooq infiltrated into India through the international border at Jammu-Samba Sector in April 2018 and took over as Jaish-e-Mohammad Commander of Pulwama. He along with his Pakistani compatriots namely Mohd. Kamran, Mohd. Ismail @ Saifullah and Qari Yasir and local associates identified as Sameer Dar and Adil Ahmad Dar planned and prepared for the attack on security forces using IEDs”, the NIA statement claimed. JeM handlers had motivated Adil Dar, a local resident, to drive an explosive-laden car to execute the terror plot.

In a written statement, NIA spokesman also said, “The charge sheet has been filed u/s 120-B, 121, 121-A, 122, 123, 307, 302 of the RPC, sections 7, 25, 27 of Arms Act, sections 3, 4, 5 & 6 of the Explosive Substances Act, sections 16, 17, 18, 18A, 18B, 19, 20, 21, 38 & 39 of the UA (P) Act, section 14C of Foreigners Act and section 4 of Jammu and Kashmir Public Property (Prevention of Damages) Act, 1985 against the 19 accused persons.”

NIA named Masood Azhar, 52 years, Pakistani national (Absconding), Rouf Asgar, 47 years, Pakistani national (Absconding), Ammar Alvi, 46 years, Pakistani national (Absconding), Shakir Bashir, 24 Years, r/o Kakapora, Pulwama, J&K. (Arrested), Insha Jan, 22 Years r/o Kakapora, Pulwama, J&K (Arrested), Peer Tariq Ahmed Shah, 53 Years, r/o Kakapora, Pulwama, J&K (Arrested), Waiz-ul-Islam, 20 Years, r/o Srinagar, J&K, viii) Mohd Abbas Rather, 31 Years, r/o Kakapura, Pulwama, J&K. (Arrested), Bilal Ahmed Kuchhey, 28 years, r/o Hajibal, Lalhar, Pulwama, J&K (Arrested), Mohd Iqbal Rather, 25 years, r/o, Charar-e-Shareef, Budgam, J&K. (Arrested), Mohd Ismail, 25 years, r/o Pakistani national (Absconding), Sameer Ahmad Dar, 22 years, r/o Kakapora, Pulwama, Kashmir (Absconding), Ashaq Ahmed Nengroo, 33 years, r/o Rajpura, Pulwama. (Absconding), Adil Ahmed Dar, 21 years, r/o Kakapora, Pulwama, Kashmir (Killed), Muhammad Umar Farooq, 24 years, r/o Pakistani national (Killed), Mohd Kamran Ali, 25 years, r/o Pakistani national (Killed), Sajjad Ahmed Bhat, 19 years, r/o Bijbehera, Anantnag (Killed), Mudasir Ahmad Khan, 24 years, r/o Awantipura, Pulwama (Killed), Qari Yasir, r/o Pakistani national (Killed). The investigation has also revealed that the Pakistan-based JeM leadership consisting of Masood Azhar, Rouf Asgar and Ammar Alvi @ Chacha @ Chota Masood were continuously giving directions and guidance to the Pakistani JeM terrorists (who had infiltrated into India) both before and after the attack.

NIA also claimed, the JeM leadership had also planned to carry out another suicide attack which got averted due to Balakot strikes and due to killing of main conspirator Mohd. Umar Farooq by the security forces. Further, due to international pressure, Pakistan lied low.

The two IED containers were fitted in Maruti EECO car and were ready by the morning of Feb 06, 2019.

To support its claims the NIA has presented digital, forensic, documentary and oral evidence establishing a fool-proof case against the accused of this ‘dastardly’ and ‘barbaric’ attack.

According to the NIA statement, “The JeM leaders have been sending their cadres to the terrorist training camps of Al-Qaida-Taliban-JeM and Haqqani-JeM in Afghanistan for receiving training in explosives and other terrorist tactics.”

“Several accused hailing from Kashmir valley namely Shakir Bashir, Insha Jan, Peer Tariq Ahmad Shah and Bilal Ahmad Kuchey provided all logistics and harboured the JeM terrorists in their houses”, the NIA statement said.

How JeM Terrorists executed the terror plot?

JeM Cadre had started planning for the terror strike three months in advance. According to the NIA statement, “From December 2018 onwards, Shakir Bashir started doing reconnaissance of the movement and deployment of security forces on the Jammu-Srinagar National Highway. Mudasir Ahmad Khan arranged Gelatin sticks and handed them over to Shakir Bashir. RDX was brought by the Pakistani terrorists who infiltrated into India. Shakir Bashir collected the explosive material i.e. RDX, Gelatin sticks, Aluminium power and Calcium-Ammonium Nitrate and stocked them at his house for making the IED.”

According to NIA, the car used for executing the terror plot was purchased in the month of January 2019.

According to NIA, “Sajjad Ahmad Bhat purchased a Maruti EECO car for the purpose of carrying out the IED attack. The car was kept in the front-yard of Shakir Bashir’s house. Waiz-Ul-Islam ordered 04 kgs of Aluminium powder from his Amazon account on the directions of accused Mohd. Ismail @ Saifullah and gave the same to him.”

“Towards the end of Jan 2019, Mohammad Umar Farooq, Sameer Dar and Adil Dar made the propaganda video clip of the suicide attack at Insha Jan’s house which was released immediately after the attack.”

“In the first week of February 2019, Mohd. Umar Farooq, Sameer Ahmad Dar, Adil Ahmad Dar and Shakir Bashir made the IED using RDX, Calcium-Ammonium Nitrate, Gelatin Sticks and Aluminium Powder and assembled it in two containers, one weighing around 160 Kgs and the second one weighing Page 3 of 3 around 40 Kgs. The two IED containers were fitted in Maruti EECO car and were ready by the morning of Feb 06, 2019. However, because of heavy snowfall, the National Highway got closed for the vehicular movement.”

On 14th Feb. 2019, as the National Highway opened, Shakir Bashir drove Adil Ahmad Dar till National Highway, after which Adil Ahmad Dar took charge of the vehicle and drove on to the National Highway and carried out the suicide attack by ramming the Maruti EECO car laden with 200 Kgs of high-grade explosives into a bus of the CRPF convoy, resulting in 40 CRPF personnel getting martyred and damage to the tune of Rs.32,90,719/- to the public property.

The NIA also stated, “the charge-sheet against 19 accused persons marks the culmination of a year & a half long painstaking and meticulous investigation with valuable inputs received from other Central and State government agencies as well as foreign law-enforcement agencies.”

“The charge-sheet has brought on record the all-out involvement of Pakistan-based entities to carry out terrorist strikes in India and to incite and provoke Kashmiri youth”. “Non-bailable warrants have been issued against the absconding accused and further investigation in the case is continued,” the NIA statement concluded.

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