He had revealed that his handler was from the Lashkar-e-Taiba wing based in J&K. The team has interrogated several people and is looking for three people
Mumbai A 12-member team headed by senior IPS officer of Maharashtra Anti-Terrorism squad have left for Jammu and Kashmir after interrogating Mohammad Junaid Mohammad Ata, 28, who was arrested in Pune last week for terror links.
He had revealed that his handler was from the Lashkar-e-Taiba wing based in J&K. The team has interrogated several people and is looking for three people- Hamidulla Zargar, Aftab Shah and Umar – all from Jammu and Kashmir.
A senior ATS official confirmed that the team had left for J&K on Friday and, looking at the seriousness of the case, a senior IPS officer is leading the team. It appears that Junaid must have taken terror training while visiting J&K.
Junaid was found accepting ₹10,000 as funds from a Jammu and Kashmir-based terror organisation. He allegedly travelled to J&K at least four times, and was in touch with the Lashkar-e-Taiba leadership in the state, and also took ₹10,000 as finance to procure arms and further the terrorist agenda. The team will conduct punchnama where he was staying in Kashmir and will question people he met, added the officer.
Junaid came in contact with terror group through social media and was subsequently radicalised using religious videos with inflammatory messages. The ATS official arrested him from the house of his relative in the Dapodi area of Pune on May 24. He is a native of Khamgaon taluka in the Buldhana district of Maharashtra. He has been staying in Dapodi for the last four years and works in a scrap dealer’s shop. He is in ATS custody till June 3.
As per the ATS offical, Zargar had formed a WhatsApp group called ‘Ansar Gazwatul Hind/Tawheed’ and Junaid was a part of the group and they allegedly discussed anti-national and terror activities. Junaid had been frequently changing his SIM cards. He also created various accounts on Facebook for recruiting new members, added the officer.
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