NIA Conducts Raids in Jammu and Kashmir to Uncover Links to New Militant Outfits. On Tuesday, the National Investigation Agency (NIA) carried out raids at multiple locations in Jammu and Kashmir as part of an ongoing investigation into the formation of new militant outfits in the region. Assisted by the police and paramilitary forces, the NIA conducted simultaneous searches at 16 locations across Srinagar, Baramulla, Shopian, Kulgam, Anantnag, Budgam, Poonch, Rajouri, and Kishtwar districts.
The raids targeted alleged hybrid militants and Overground Workers (OGWs) associated with the newly-formed offshoots and affiliates of major banned terrorist organizations supported by Pakistan. The NIA’s investigations have revealed the involvement of these cadres and workers in activities such as collecting and distributing sticky bombs, magnetic bombs, improvised explosive devices (IEDs), cash, drugs, and small weapons. They have also been found to engage in spreading terror-related activities, violence, and subversion in Jammu and Kashmir.According to the NIA, the investigations have uncovered the use of drones by Pakistan-based operatives to deliver weapons, bombs, drugs, and other supplies to their operatives and cadres in the Kashmir valley.
The newly floated terrorist groups under scrutiny include “The Resistance Front (TRF),” “United Liberation Front Jammu & Kashmir (UL J&K),” “Mujahideen Gazwat-ul-Hind (MGH),” “Jammu & Kashmir Freedom Fighters (JKFF),” Kashmir Tigers, PAAF, and others. These outfits are affiliated with organizations such as Lashkar-e-Toiba (LeT), Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM), Hizb-ul-Mujahideen (HM), Al-Badr, and Al-Qaeda.The emergence of these new militant outfits, particularly TRF and PAAF, gained attention after the revocation of Jammu and Kashmir’s special status in August 2019. These groups have claimed responsibility for numerous militant attacks in the past three years, especially in the Pir Panjal area of Jammu.Earlier this month, the NIA conducted raids at 12 locations in Jammu and Kashmir, leading to the seizure of incriminating material and digital devices. The investigations are part of a larger conspiracy by these terrorist outfits, along with local youth and overground workers, to carry out acts of terror and violence with the aim of disrupting peace and communal harmony in the region.