The Jammu and Kashmir State Investigation Agency (SIA) has filed a chargesheet against two terrorists in connection with the grenade attack on a temple in the Surankote area of Poonch district on November 15, 2023. The chargesheet was presented in a Jammu court.
The accused have been identified as Abdul Aziz, a resident of Hari Safeda village in Surankote, and Nazir Ahmed alias Naziroo alias Ali Khan, a Pakistan-based operative originally from the same village.
According to the SIA, Abdul Aziz carried out the grenade attack on the instructions of Nazir Ahmed, who has been operating from Pakistan since 2001. Nazir Ahmed had crossed over to Pakistan in 2001, where he joined the banned terror group Hizbul Mujahideen (HM) and later became associated with the Jammu Kashmir Gaznavi Force (JKGF).
Investigations revealed that towards the end of 2022, Nazir Ahmed re-established contact with Abdul Aziz, who is also his relative, through encrypted messaging applications using Pakistan-based numbers. During this time, Nazir Ahmed radicalized and recruited Abdul Aziz into HM and JKGF, instructing him to carry out grenade attacks in the Poonch district to further the terror outfits' agenda and ideology.
The SIA sources said that Ahmed not only indoctrinated and recruited Aziz but also supplied him with hand grenades and gave him detailed instructions for the execution of the attack on the temple through encrypted communication channels.
The investigation revealed a wider conspiracy by the Pakistan-sponsored HM to destabilize the Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir by spreading terror, inciting communal violence, and undermining public peace by creating fear among the common people. The attack on the temple was a part of this plan.
Abdul was arrested in October of last year in a joint operation by the Army's 37RR and CRPF's 38Bn with two hand grenades. During the investigation, one more grenade was recovered from his house. His accomplice, Hussain, was also arrested along with a pistol, one magazine, and nine rounds, police said.
The SIA has stated that the filing of the chargesheet underscores the agency's unwavering resolve to dismantle terror networks and safeguard the peace and security of Jammu and Kashmir.
