STATE TIMES NEWS
Srinagar: The National Investigation Agency (NIA) on Wednesday conducted searches at nine locations in the Kashmir valley in connection with a case related to the recovery of a huge cache of arms and ammunition here, an official said.
Two local “hybrid” militants of proscribed terror outfit Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) were arrested in the Chanapora area of Srinagar on May 23, and 15 pistols, 30 magazines, 300 rounds and a silencer were seized from them.
Two more accused were arrested later, and a vehicle was seized.
A spokesperson of the NIA said the searches were conducted at nine locations in Kashmir five in Pulwama district of south Kashmir and four in Srinagar district in the case related to a conspiracy of carrying out terror activities in and around Srinagar.
21 Hindus among 118 civilians killed since Aug 2019 in J&K
New Delhi: As many as 118 civilians, including five Kashmiri Pandits and 16 other Hindus and Sikhs, were killed in Jammu and Kashmir since the abrogation of Article 370 in 2019, the government said Wednesday.
Union Minister of State for Home Nityanand Rai also said in Rajya Sabha that 5,502 Kashmiri Pandits have been provided jobs in different departments of government of Jammu and Kashmir in the valley and no Kashmiri Pandit has reportedly migrated from the valley since August 2019.
Rai said there has been substantial decline in terrorist attacks in last three years – from 417 in 2018 to 229 in 2021.
“From August 5, 2019 till July 9, 2022, 128 security force personnel and 118 civilians were killed by terrorists in Jammu and Kashmir. Out of 118 civilians killed, 5 were Kashmiri Pandits and 16 belonged to other Hindu and Sikh communities,” he said, in a written reply to a question.
He said no pilgrim has been killed during this period.
The minister said the government has a policy of zero tolerance towards terrorism and the security situation has improved significantly in Jammu and Kashmir.
He said jobs to the Kashmiri Pandits were given under the Prime Minister’s Development Package (PMDP).
Article 370, which gave special status to Jammu and Kashmir, was abrogated on August 5, 2019 and the state was bifurcated into two Union territories – Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh.
The case was registered initially at the Chanapora police station on May 23 and re-registered by the NIA on June 18 for a thorough investigation.
The NIA said the searches were conducted at the premises of the accused and other suspected persons, leading to the recovery and seizure of digital devices and other incriminating materials.
“Further investigations in the case are in progress,” the spokesperson said.
“Hybrid” militants is a term coined by the security forces in Jammu and Kashmir to describe those ultras who carry out a subversive task assigned to them by their handlers before slipping back into normal life.