The National Investigating Agency (NIA) has formally arrested first Kashmiri resident, a truck driver, for escorting two lashkar-e-Tayyeba (leT) militants to Udhampur for carrying out a deadly attack on a BSF bus killing two soldiers.
Khurshid Ahmad Bhat, a resident of Charsoo village in south Kashmir’s Pulwama district, had been picked up two days ago but was formally arrested after Mohammad Yaqub Naved, the Pakistani militant who was captured alive after the encounter on August 4, identified him.
Naved had revealed the details of his arrival in Kashmir from Pakistan and subsequent activities in various districts until he was tasked to carry out an attack in Jammu region. The NIA had picked up six locals for questioning. Sources said that three persons have been picked up from Kulgam after Bhat’s arrest.
Bhat alias Surya is said to be an overground leT operative and has been jailed in the past for his involvement in narcotics trade. He was also involved in incidents of stone-pelting on security forces during 2010. The arrest came a day after NIA chief Sharad Kumar was in Srinagar to oversee the investigations into the case. Earlier this week, Naved underwent lie detection tests in New Delhi confirming his involvement in the terror plot.
NIA was handed over the Udhampur case on 7 August, two days after Naved and his accomplice Momin attacked a BSF convoy killing two personnel. Momin was killed in retaliatory fire.
Naved had escaped from the encounter site after holding two locals hostage on gunpoint. However, the locals overpowered and handed him over to police.