Pak ISI plotting big strikes outside Valley

New Delhi: The Intelligence Bureau (IB), India’s internal spy agency, has alerted Delhi Police against potential terror attacks in the National Capital Region (NCR) post revocation of Article 370 in Jammu and Kashmir. Its top secret reports say, “With Jaish-e-Mohammedd (JeM) and Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) exposed at international platforms, Al-umar-Mujahideen (AuM) is the new poster boy of ISI (Pakistan’s Inter-Services Intelligence) and is capable of carrying major terror strikes outside the Valley”.

The Pakistan-based terror outfit, AuM, is led by dreaded Kashmiri terrorist Mushtaq Ahmed Zargar alias Mushtaq Latram, whose module executed terror strike in Anantnag, near Srinagar on June 12 last, killing five CRPF jawans.

“Zargar has recruited Kashmiri cadres from Jammu and Kashmir as well from Pakistan Occupied Kashmir (PoK). Post revocation of Article 370, the ISI’s intention is to use Zargar’s cadres to carry out terror strikes in and out of Jammu and Kashmir,” says the IB report.

In a security briefing given to top Delhi police officers, the IB suggested strict anti-terror measures in the NCR (with the help of respective state police) to counter the ISI plot. The measures to be taken by the police includes intensive vigil on cyber cafes, old car dealers, SIM card dealers, chemical shops, besides carrying out other secret drills. The reports says AuM’s present headquarters is based in Muzaffarabad (PoK) where the outfit runs a terror camp under the supervision of ISI officials.

The report says at present, Pakistan’s political establishment, its Army and ISI — all three — are working in tandem, and are desperate to internationalise the Kashmir issue. On Islamabad’s hidden goal, the report says, “Only spectacular (terror) action to be executed; internationalisation is the intent.”

For this sinister plan, the ISI is tasking ‘fidayeen’ groups, which primarily includes AuM, for carrying out massive terror attacks outside the Valley. The report says after revocation of Article 370, Pakistan Army chief Qamar Javed Bajwa’s open stand on Kashmir ostensibly gave a free hand to the ISI in tasking terror groups to carry out massive terrorist activities.

The report reveals that ISI can plot terror attacks through fidayeens, either as a human bomb or a driver of explosive laden vehicle (VB-IED). Similarly terrorists can lob grenades in crowded areas or plant IEDs. For a major strike, to capture world attention, the terrorists can plant IEDs as well as resort to indiscriminate firing in high-security zones, in key cities in India located outside the Valley.

Sources in Delhi police said top cops are monitoring the security upgrade and extra vigil particularly in areas vulnerable to such strikes.

Published on: Aug 31, 2019 at 11:48 IST

BY SANJEEV KUMAR SINGH CHAUHAN/IANS