Srinagar: The National Investigation Agency (NIA) on Tuesday cracked down once again on the newly-floated offshoots of proscribed Pakistan-backed militant outfits operating in Jammu and Kashmir and conducted raids at five locations in south Kashmir, officials said.

The raids were conducted in the three districts of Anantnag, Shopian and Pulwama in the Kashmir valley, and the agency seized several digital devices containing massive incriminating data.

A spokesperson of NIA said the locations raided on Tuesday were residential premises of hybrid militants and Overground Workers (OGWs) linked with the newly-formed offshoots and affiliates of several banned Kashmiri terrorist outfits. Premises of sympathisers and cadres of these organisations were also raided.

“All these cadres and workers are being investigated for activities relating to terror, violence and subversion in J&K,” the spokesperson said.

NIA suspects their involvement in the collection and distribution of sticky bombs, magnetic bombs, IEDs, funds, narcotic substances and arms or ammunition.

The J&K terror conspiracy case was registered suo moto by NIA on June 21, 2022 at its Jammu police station .
The case related to a physical and online conspiracy by the banned terror organisations to launch a series of violent terrorist attacks in J&K with sticky bombs, IEDs and small arms etc. The Pakistan-backed outfits are also engaged in radicalizing local youth and mobilizing overground workers, to disturb peace and communal harmony in J&K.

As per NIA investigations, Pak-based operatives behind the conspiracy were using various social media platforms to spread terror among the people. They were also using drones to deliver arms/ammunition, explosives, narcotics etc. to their agents and cadres in the Kashmir valley.

The newly floated terror outfits under investigation include The Resistance Front (TRF), United Liberation Front Jammu & Kashmir (ULFJ&K), Mujahideen Gazwat-ul-Hind (MGH), Jammu & Kashmir Freedom Fighters (JKFF), Kashmir Tigers, PAAF and others. These outfits are affiliated to major banned terrorist organisations like Laskhar-e-Toiba (LeT), Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM), Hizb-ul-Mujahideen (HM), Al-Badr, Al-Qaeda, etc.

(With UNI inputs)