NIA arrests truck driver who ferried captured Pak terrorist

“They got 14-day remand”, court sources said. While the terrorist has told interrogators that he is from Faislabad in Pakistan and has even allegedly located his home on Google maps, Islamabad has rejected that claim and wants “scientific evidence”. Qasim may still be in South Kashmir, an officer says. Clashes broke out in the area after the news of the three being taken into custody spread in the locality.

Earlier this month, two BSF jawans were martyred when the militants attacked their convoy in Jammu and Kashmir’s Udhampur district. It said Abu Qasim had arranged the logistics to execute a Fidayeen attack on BSF personnel.

The NIA since then had been on the look out for the truck driver who had been absconding to avoid arrest.

The driver was identified as Khursheed Ahmed alias “Surya”, who is said to be an overground operative of the LeT. Khursheed, 35, is a resident of Awantipura in south Kashmir, the region in which Qasim is believed to be operating as a “commander” of the LeT. While Momin was killed in retaliatory fire, Naved was captured by locals he had held hostage, and later handed over to the police.

Investigators are also working on getting the exact details of routes used by Naved, the people who helped him in J&K and proof of him being in regular touch with his Pakistani handlers across the border.

The NIA sources said Khursheed had taken Naved and his accomplice Mohammed Noman alias Momin to Jammu on July 20 on a reconnaissance mission during which the timings of convoys of BSF and Army were marked. The driver is accused of ferrying Naved and few other militants. The anti-terror agency has also announced a cash reward of Rs five lakh to anyone providing information leading to their arrest.

“He is an over-ground worker of the Lashkar-e-Toiba, and had served more than two years in prison for drug-smuggling and stone-pelting”. Two days back, the NIA had picked up two persons on the basis of a sketch prepared.