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| Inspite of official claims that LeT stands wiped out in J&K, it continues to " worry" SFs here | | | Bharat Bhushan
JAMMU, Apr 18: Notwithstanding the oft-repeated claims of the State police and Army that Lashkar-e-Toiba (LeT) almost stands wiped out in J&K, the outfit here has been forces' headache for long.
The major LeT strikes in India included massacre of 35 Sikhs at Chhatisingpora in Kashmir in 2000, attack on Parliament in 2001, killing of 60 people in an explosion in a New Delhi market in 2005, massacre of 34 people in Doda district of Jammu region in April 2006 and killing of 211 persons in blasts in Mumbai trains in July 2006.
However, with the gunning down of main LeT operatives in encounters with security forces in the State in the past two years, the outfit's actvities have come down to a level where these can be termed negligible.
"But the drop in militant activities in Kashmir and other parts of India has led to frustration among top LeT commanders in Pakistan," a senior State Government officer said, quoting intelligence inputs.
Because of the growing frustration, the outfit was now more determined than ever to carry out a big strike here, he added.
He said LeT was trying to revive its activities in J&K. For the purpose, it had shifted its control and command structure to Rawalpindi in Pakistan and close to LoC in PoK, in a bid to directly control and guide its cadres active in the State, he added.
He felt that even the US bounty on LeT founder Hafiz Saeed would not deter the outfit from infiltrating its militants into J&K to give impetus to the hitherto waging militancy here.
The reward is only for "information that could lead to Saeed's prosecution". "This means the US does not rely on the evidence provided by India against Saeed after 26/11," he added.
He said though the US banned LeT in 2001 and Jamat-ud-Dawa (LeT's new name after ban on it) in 2006, it lacked the will to force Pakistan to take action against Saeed and other top Pakistan-based LeT operatives.
He said LeT activities, which were expected to rise in J&K in future, had the potential to increase further the Indo-Pak tensions.
"If LeT militants succeed in attacking any part of India in a big way again, peace initiatives between the two countries will have no meaning in that situation. The heightened tension, under such circumstances, has the potential to trigger an armed conflict between the two neighbours," the officer added.
"To ensure that peace is not disturbed in the region, the US ought to try all the available options to make sure that Pakistan turns off its terror tap," he asserted.
The officer said the group was also said to have trained 21 female terrorists in a camp at Divalia in Muzaffarabad, PoK, to carry forward sabotage activities in the Valley and in other parts of India.
The group, after training, had been placed under the command of LeT's Sayeed Sadaqat Hussain, for future deployment in Kashmir. This new group was named as Dukhtareen-e-Toiba.
However, DGP Kuldeep Khoda, had on March 22 last, said there were no inputs as regards the revival of LeT's women cadre in the State.
The officer, however, said LeT had always remained a cause of worry for anti-insurgency forces in the State. Its cadres were involved in several militancy-related incidents in J&K upto the first week of April this year, he added.
On January 4, an LeT module was busted in Kashmir's Sonawari area, with the arrest of Zahoor Ahmed Dar, Ghulam Muhammad Bhat and Nissar Ahmed Ganaie. Zahoor was alleged to have crossed over to Pakistan for computer training in a LeT camp in May 2011. After staying there for 15 days, he had come back.
A day later, i.e. on January 5, another LeT module was neutralised at Anantnag, with the arrest of Younis Ahmad, Shakoorul Mansoor Parray, Tawseef Hussain Bhat, Mudasir Ahmad Bhat, Mohammad Shafi Bhat and Mohammad Younis Bhat.
On January 19, LeT commander Abrar Khan alias Abu Mavia alias Abu Wasim alias Mistry was killed in an encounter with security forces at Khaneti in Salwa area of Mendhar in Poonch. He was a Pakistani.
On February 4, LeT militants -- Muzaffar Ahmad Shiekh alias Chotu and Aashiq Hussain Shah -- were killed in an encounter with security forces at Adoora in Pulwama, Kashmir.
On February 21, troops killed top LeT militant Ukasha Badar -- a Pak national -- in an encounter in Mominabad area of Sopore.
On February 26, forces gunned down LeT militants -- Shahnawaz Khandey alias Bilal Ahmed and Mohammad Rafi -- in an encounter in Kishtwar, Jammu.
In another encounter with security forces, LeT militant Nissar Ahmad Magray alias Shakti was killed in Pattan area of Baramulla on March 23.
Five LeT militants were killed in two gunbattles with the SFs in Panjwani and Laribal areas of Handwara on March 28.
On April 1, police held a computer engineer with alleged links to the LeT. He was alleged to have planned and executed the car bomb explosion near Bijbehara in Anantnag on March 22 that killed his accomplice Mohammad Abbas Dar and left 20 others injured.
Five LeT militants were killed in an encounter with the SFs in Kramhoora forests of Handwara in Kashmir on April 5.
A major success was achieved by police on January 20 when they laid hands on three LeT operatives -- Mohammad Rafiq, Aabid Hussain Rather and Abdul Rashid Khoja -- at Handwara in Kupwara, Kashmir. They had allegedly been coercing Muqam and Hindwanpora residents to donate money to the outfit.
The officer said the backbone of militancy was broken in the State and there existed a vast intelligence network of anti-insurgency forces, including police. Under the prevailing circumstances, it would be very difficult for LeT, or any other outfit to restart its activities here, he asserted. |
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