Hizbul man held in Bengaluru, 4 terrorists killed in J&K encounters

Srinagar/Bengaluru: Four terrorists, including three from the Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT), were killed in separate encounters in Jammu & Kashmir, and a suspected Hizbul Mujahideen operative was arrested in Bengaluru on Tuesday as the security establishment launched a counteroffensive following a spate of targeted killings.

At least 11 terrorists have been killed in Jammu & Kashmir over the past 10 days. This follows the killings of at least seven civilians – including migrant workers and Kashmiri Pandits -- between May 26 and June 3.

People aware of the development said the counteroffensive is being monitored by the Union home minister Amit Shah, who has been in touch with lieutenant governor (LG) Manoj Sinha and the state police leadership.

The crackdown on terror networks behind the killing became crucial after the attacks prompted fear among the targeted communities.

In Jammu & Kashmir, a total of four terrorists were killed in the last 24 hours in three different gunfights between forces and the militants. In addition to the three LeT operatives, the fourth was from the Hizbul Mujahideen. Among the four, two were from Lahore, while the others were from Awantipora and Kulgam in Kashmir.

The encounters began after police launched a search operation on the basis of inputs about the possible presence of terrorists in the area.

“Two terrorists of proscribed terror outfit LeT, including one Pakistani terrorist namely Tufail, killed. Search still going on,” Kashmir inspector general of police (IGP) Vijay Kumar tweeted.

A third terrorist was killed in Badimarg-Aloora area in an encounter with security forces in Shopian district, the official cited above said.

An LeT terrorist from Pakistan was gunned down in an encounter in north Kashmir’s Sopore area.

Since March, at least 12 civilians have been killed by unidentified terrorists so far. Some of the high profile murders included that of a bank manager who was shot dead at work, a government staffer killed at the Tehsil office, a TV actor who was shot while out with her son, and two migrant labourers who were returning after work.

Kumar told news agency ANI that most of the terrorists behind these murders had been neutralised, with one suspect remaining in the bank manager’s case who has been identified and will be “arrested/neutralised” soon.

In Karnataka, police said a suspected Hizbul Mujahideen terrorist was arrested from Bengaluru’s Okalipuram area in a joint operation by Jammu and Kashmir Police and Indian Army’s Rashtriya Rifles on June 3.

The accused, Talib Hussain, is a resident of Kishtwar district in Jammu and Kashmir and is believed to be an active member of Hizbul Mujahideen since 2016, state police officials said. Hussain came to Bengaluru a year ago and was staying in a mosque in Srirampura area, they said.

Mosque authorities, however, claimed they were not aware of Hussain’s purported links with the terror outfit. They claimed the suspected terrorist had come with his wife and child during the second wave of Covid pandemic, and refuted police’s claim that he would make provocative speeches during Friday prayers.

Karnataka chief minister Basavaraj Bommai said his government will extend all possible help to Jammu and Kashmir Police in the case.

“It is an ongoing process. Police will keep an eye on the movement of people. Our police have extended help. An arrest was made in Bhatkal earlier. Now, the Jammu and Kashmir Police have arrested one person in Bengaluru. We have extended help,” he said.

Home minister Araga Jnanendra said the state police had begun a probe following Hussain’s arrest. “The state police are coordinating with their Jammu and Kashmir counterparts and intensified investigation to identify those individuals and organisations, which harboured him,” he said.