Police on Friday attributed the September 20 terror attack on a Sashastra Seema Bal (SSB) camp to the radicalisation of two local students at Kashmir’s Anantnag degree college.
SSB head constable Ramparvesh Yadav from Balia in Uttar Pradesh was killed in the incident at Banihal in Ramban district, while assistant sub-inspector Shyam Singh sustained injuries.
Inspector general of police (Jammu zone) SDS Jamwal told mediapersons that the two suspects – Gazanfar Iqbal Khan and Mohammed Arif – were local residents radicalised during their time spent in Anantnag. “We will know more as the investigation advances. As of now, we can only say that they were radicalised... probably even through cyberspace,” he said in response to a query.
Both Khan and Arif are in their early twenties.
The police officer said timely action by police and security forces led to the arrest of the two alleged militants and neutralised a terror module at Banihal. “In a successful attack, security forces apprehended Khan and Arif within 24 hours of the attack. A hunt is on for the third accomplice, Aqib Ahmed Najar of Kaskoot village,” he added.
Two service weapons, an AR 41 firearm and an INSAS rifle snatched from SSB personnel, were also recovered from their possession. Najar, who is still at large, is suspected to be the mastermind behind the attack. He was reportedly working as a helper at the Navyuga Engineering base camp in Banihal, where SSB personnel have been deputed to secure an under-construction tunnel.
{{/usCountry}}Two service weapons, an AR 41 firearm and an INSAS rifle snatched from SSB personnel, were also recovered from their possession. Najar, who is still at large, is suspected to be the mastermind behind the attack. He was reportedly working as a helper at the Navyuga Engineering base camp in Banihal, where SSB personnel have been deputed to secure an under-construction tunnel.
{{/usCountry}}“We will also ask other construction agencies to get their workers verified by the police, so such attacks can be averted in the future,” Jamwal said. The attack was initially misconstrued as an incident of fratricide.
The police officer said the attackers will be dealt as per the provisions of law, without leniency. “We shall not allow any terror module to come up in Jammu region,” he added.
Intelligence agencies and the Army have alerted the central government to the “disturbing trend” of separatists, overground workers and terrorist sympathisers radicalising youngsters across the Valley.