Police on Thursday claimed to have busted a Pakistan-sponsored narco-terror module by arresting three associates of Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) alongwith 21 kg heroin worth Rs 100 crore in international market and Rs 1.34 crore cash at Handwara in the frontier Kashmir district of Kupwara.
“On reliable information, police has busted a Pakistan-sponsored Narco-terror module by arresting three associates of LeT. Incriminating materials — including 21 kg of heroin worth Rs 100 crore in international market, cash worth Rs1.34 crores and a cash counting machine — were recovered from their possession,” Superintendent of Police (SP), Handwara, G V Sundeep Chakravarthy told reporters during a press conference in Handwara on Thursday.
Giving details, he said police had been receiving specific inputs from last two weeks about a major drug trafficking racket operating in Handwara. “Various police teams where developing these inputs, technically and investigatively,” he said.
He said all the persons arrested were in constant contact with their Pakistani handlers. “The module was responsible for giving financial support to LeT militants in J&K though funds generated by drugs trafficking,” he said.
He said the recoveries have once again exposed the inter connection between drug dealers and militants. “It is a very big Hawala racket where money is transferred without money movement to finance militant activities,” he said.
The SP Handwara said that the accused have been identified as Syed Iftikhar Indrabi, a resident of Laribal Rajwar Handwara, his son-in-law Moomin Peer and Iqbal-ul-Islam, both residents of Waskura in Handwara. “More arrests would happen in the coming day,” he added.
Mr Chakravarthy said Indrabi is the main accused, who already has two cases of drug trafficking registered against him.
The police officer said that the module was working to strengthen the activities of LeT in the valley and were misguiding and motivating the local youth of the Valley to join militant ranks. “A Case under relevant sections of law has been registered at Police Station Handwara and investigation has been taken up,” he added.
Meanwhile, a Special Investigation Team (SIT) has been constituted to ascertain the ties of the accused with militant outfits, smugglers and other anti-national elements.