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Pakistan not cooperating, Pulwama probe stuck three years later
Other than taking custody of Azhar, Asghar, Athar and Alvi, Indian authorities are seeking from Pakistan details of their communication, including WhatsApp chats, voice notes and Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) calls with Athar’s son and the strike’s key executioner Mohammad Umar Farooq .
Three years after the Pulwama attack, which brought India and Pakistan to the brink of war, the Imran Khan government is yet to take action against terror group Jaish-e-Mohammad’s chief Maulana Masood Azhar, his brothers Abdul Rauf Asghar and Ibrahim Athar and cousin Ammar Alvi despite a probe by India’s National Investigation Agency (NIA) revealing their direct involvement in the terror strike that killed 40 troopers.
Other than taking custody of Azhar, Asghar, Athar and Alvi, Indian authorities are seeking from Pakistan details of their communication, including WhatsApp chats, voice notes and Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) calls with Athar’s son and the strike’s key executioner Mohammad Umar Farooq .
Farooq, according to the NIA charge sheet filed in August 2020, was in regular touch with Rauf Asghar throughout the planning during which the date of the Pulwama attack was changed from February 6 to February 14, 2019.
Farooq, killed in an encounter by security forces on March 29, 2019, was sent to India sometime in April 2018 to supervise the strike which triggered the Indian Air Force (IAF) action against a Jaish terror camp deep inside Pakistan 12 days later, and resulted in a dogfight between fighter jets of the two nations on February 27.
A senior NIA officer, requesting anonymity, said there is irrefutable technical and physical evidence for Pakistan to act against JeM leadership other than Interpol red notices pending against them. “Our investigation in India is over and trial will start soon.”
In all, NIA named 19 persons in its 13,500 page charge sheet including Azhar’s family members and 12 Kashmir based operatives of the outfit.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi and several cabinet ministers including Rajnath Singh, Amit Shah, and S Jaishankar on Monday paid tributes to the CRPF jawans, who lost their lives in the attack. “I pay homage to all those martyred in Pulwama on this day in 2019 and recall their outstanding service to our nation. Their bravery and supreme sacrifice motivates every Indian to work towards a strong and prosperous country,” Modi tweeted.
Shah said that “the nation will always be indebted to your (CRPF) jawans’) sacrifice. Your bravery will continue to inspire us to root out terrorism”.
Congress leader Rahul Gandhi too tweeted on Pulwama attack anniversary saying, “ We can never forget the martyrs of Pulwama. Their sacrifice and that of their families will not go in vain -- we will ensure answers are given. Jai Hind”.
The CRPF paid homage to its jawans in Srinagar.
Since 2019, there has been a sea change in the way convoys move in Kashmir Valley. The CRPF completely overhauled its standard operating procedure (SOP), according to which only smaller contingents of vehicles can now move. On February 2019, the CRPF had 78 vehicles in the convoy.
And whenever convoys of security forces move in the Valley now, civilian movement in that particular stretch is restricted.
While there was no latest statement by the Union ministry of external affairs on the Pulwama attack, the MEA in March, 2019 expressed its “disappointment” at Pakistan’s response on the matter. “India is disappointed at Pakistan’s response to our detailed dossier on the Jaish-e-Mohammed’s complicity in the cross-border terror attack in Pulwama, the presence of its terror camps and leadership in Pakistan.”
“Regrettably, Pakistan continues to be in denial and even refuses to acknowledge Pulwama as a terror attack. It has not shared details of credible action, if any, taken by it against terrorists or terrorist organizations based in territories under its control,” the ministry said.
