In a first,Lashkar probes Valley killing,blames one among us

Initially,we thought that Indian army and institutions had martyred Moulana Showkat sahib to weaken the movement and create misunderstanding within us, says the report,which was released by an All-Party Probe Committee comprising both factions of the Hurriyat Conference,Jamat-e-Islami,Jammu amp; Kashmir Liberation Front,Jamiat-e-Ahlihadees and other leading religious organisations. We had no idea that the assassin would be one among us.

The militants held responsible by the Lashkar Javaid Munshi alias Billi Pappa and his accomplice Nisar Ahmad have already been arrested by the Jamp;K Police,who have charged them with the murder.

The all-party probe committee was set up soon after Shah,the leader of the Jamiat-e-Ahlihadees,was killed in a precision improvised explosive device IED attack as he entered the mosque for Friday prayers on April 8 this year. The attack drew largescale public condemnation,and separatists of all hues came together with major religious bodies to probe the murder. Militant outfits promised support to the all-party initiative.

This is what the Lashkar report says:

Mohammad Imran alias Abu Kittal who was known as fidayeen in Kashmiri jail was recently released and reached us safely. He is a simple militant and doesnt understand the nuances of politics and its processes. Once he came,he said that you are making a big mistake by supporting political people because most of them are hand in glove with India. He mentioned names which included several prominent people from this all party probe committee. When we asked him who told him all this,he named Javaid Munshi alias Billi Pappa who too was languishing in Srinagar jail. In jail,Munshi had told him Imran alias Kittal that we have killed Moulana Showkat and we will soon kill JKLF leader Yasin Malik and others. Javaid Munshi had also told Imran alias Kittal that once he reaches Pakistan,he must tell Jamat-ud-dawah chief Hafiz Mohammad Sayeed that these political people are on the wrong side and tell Lashkar to shun support to these people politicians in Kashmir.

After his arrest,Javaid Munshi had named Lashkars Sopore commander Abdullah Unny saying that he has helped him Munshi in this act assassination. He had also mentioned the name of Dr Qasim Ashiq Hussain Faktoo alias Mohamamd Qasim who too is languishing in jail. This was done to complicate the investigation and give an impression that the people from Moulana Showkats own sect were involved in his killing.

When Abdullah Unny was questioned,he said that when I Unny was in contact with Javaid Munshi,he Munshi had talked about Moulana Showkats assassination and I Unny tried to convince him that such an act was not right. Then his Munshis actions became suspect and I again questioned him,he Munshi started distancing himself. And when he Munshi committed this demonic act of killing Moulana Showkat,he named me Unny to take a revenge on me and also to involve Lashkar.

The report quotes Lashkars Muzaffarabad-based operational commander Hanzla Adnan: 8230;Javaid Munshi and Nisar Ahmad were introduced to me Adnan by Sheikh Jameel-ur-Rehmans right hand man Abu Umair.

He Umair lives in Muzaffarabad and is working for Tehreek-ul-Mujahideen8230; We started to help him cautiously. One group of people with Umair was led by Javaid Munshi while Nisar was part of another group8230; In 2010,some arms and ammunition were sent through Umair which reached Javaid Munshi. They also took one lakh rupees from us to make explosives which they later claimed was seized.

The Tehreek-ul-Mujahideen,a militant outfit which is almost defunct in the Valley,is,like the Lashkar,Salfi. In the heyday of militancy,the Tehreek-ul-Mujahideen was considered very close to the Jamiat-e-Ahlihadees,which is the premier religious body of the Ahli Hadees Salfi sect of Muslims in Kashmir.

The release of the report is significant for several reasons. This is the first time that a militant outfit has probed a high profile assassination of a leader in Kashmir and put the blame on the men inside their ranks.

Second,the report largely confirms the investigations conducted by Jamp;K Police,who identified eight people involved in the murder,six of whom are already behind bars. The police had blamed Abdullah Unny for providing explosives to Javaid Munshi to carry out the assassination.