Al Qaeda’s Kashmir affiliate wiped out, says J&K DGP Dilbag Singh

Lelhari and his associates Naveed Ahmed Tak and Junaid Rashid were killed in a gunfight in Rajpora village of Tral, in Awantipora, on Tuesday evening, the police said.

Director General of Jammu and Kashmir Police Dilbagh Singh addressing a press conference in Srinagar. (Express photo by Shuaib Masoodi)

Addressing the media in Srinagar, DGP Singh pointed out that Lelhari was made leader of AGH after Zakir Musa was killed on May 24. “At that time, this group (AGH) had been wiped out, but after he (Lelhari) motivated them, two people joined the militant ranks — Naveed and Junaid. The three militants worked in coordination with Jaish-e-Mohammad (JeM), which is forging ties with Lashkar-e-Toiba (and) Hizb-ul-Mujahideen…in attempt to increase violence on the directions of Pakistani agencies.”

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A resident of Lelhar village in Pulwama, Lelhari had joined the militant ranks in 2016, according to the police. Before joining AGH, he was associated with JeM. DGP Singh said Lelhari was involved in several attacks on security forces and the killing of a civilian in south Kashmir.

After the trio was killed on Tuesday, DGP Singh said that the police initially got information that a local man was identified and the two others were Pakistani or foreign terrorists. “But late night, the two others were identified. All three were local militants, all of them associated with AGH,” he said.

Singh said Junaid’s brother was also a militant, and he had been killed earlier. “We also feel the pain that these people have taken to the wrong path,” he said. “Even today, we want young men on the wrong path to shun weapons and take the right path.” Weapons, he added, lead to death.

The DGP also said that as against apprehension that a large number of young people would take up guns in the Valley “after August 5” — when the Union government announced repeal of special status to J&K and bifurcation of the state into two UTs — “we are happy to say that the number of boys (joining militant ranks) is less than what was before this (August 5)”. Militancy, he said, can be checked only when the local youth shun the path of violence and choose peace.

DGP Singh also said that a “sizeable” number of militants have infiltrated into the Valley, although he declined to give any numbers. “Decrease in militant activities has worried Pakistan, that’s why they are making every effort to push militants (into the Valley). Some militants have infiltrated, and a large number of their attempts have been foiled. I can’t give you the exact number of militants who have come in after August 5 but their number is sizeable — that much I can say,” Singh said.

Singh said: “Their sightings have taken place at a number of places in north Kashmir and south Kashmir, and going by that we feel that the number is sizeable. But again, I would say that the number is not that big that we should be very worried about it. As it happens always, they (Pakistan) send some number, we deplete some number. Therefore that process is on (and) we would bring the number (of militants) down.”