Court sends suspected LeT operative to JC till Sep 15

New Delhi, Aug 17 (PTI) A special court today sentBahadur Ali alias ‘Saifullah’, a Pakistani national allegedlyworking for terror outfit Lashkar-e-Taiba, to judicial custodytill September 15, after the NIA said it did not require hisfurther custodial interrogation. According to court sources, Ali was produced beforeDistrict Judge Amar Nath on expiry of his NIA remand, andduring in-camera proceedings, the National InvestigationAgency (NIA) moved an application seeking one month JC for theaccused. In a new twist to the ongoing turmoil in Kashmir, NIA hadcited Ali’s confessional video to claim that the ongoingunrest in the Valley was being orchestrated by Pakistan-basedLeT which had played a major role in fuelling the unrest,triggered by the encounter killing of a militant leader. The agency has claimed that since summer this year, thebanned outfit, with the "help of Pakistani forces deployed onthe border", pushed heavily armed terrorists into India withthe direction to mix with local people, create disturbance andattack police and security forces. NIA had earlier told the court that along with hisassociates, Ali had planned terror attacks to "destabilise thesecurity and sovereignty" of India. A fourth-class dropout, Ali, who hails from Jahamavillage of Raiwind in Lahore, was arrested from village Yahamain Mawar area of Qalamabad, Handwara, in North Kashmir on July25. The army had claimed to have recovered three AK-47 rifles,two pistols and Indian Rs 23,000 from his possession. According to NIA, Ali was trained at a Lashkar camp inPoK to carry out various activities, includig map reading andoperating GPS devices. Minister of State for Home Kiren Rijiju had called Ali a"very good catch" and said his arrest will lead to moresuccesses. PTI UKARC