New Delhi:
Pakistani state actors are pushing battle-hardened terrorists of the Jaish-e-Mohammed into India from several areas in Jammu and Kashmir, sources told NDTV. Data analysis and evidence collected by Indian intelligence operatives support this assessment as infiltration attempts have risen, sources said.
Latest intercepts of communication between key members of the terrorist groups Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) and Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM) indicate differences between them have deepened over planning terror attacks in South Asia, sources said.
“They don’t want to work together due to differences in ideology. The Pakistani army tried to pacify both the groups, but it failed. Instead, they are using Jaish in Jammu and Kashmir and giving them safe passage to infiltrate into India. More Jaish terrorists have been pushed into India in the last few months,” a senior intelligence operative told NDTV, requesting anonymity.
JeM follows the Deobandi sect, a revivalist movement within Sunni Islam, while LeT follows the Ahl-i Hadith, formed by the 18th-century ideologue Shah Waliullah Dehlavi.
The recent killings in Pakistan are a result of a fallout between these two terror groups, intelligence operatives said. Terror financier Qari Abdu Rehman, a relative of India’s most wanted terrorist Hafiz Saeed, was shot dead by unknown gunmen in Karachi on Monday.
Indian officials who are looking into recent infiltration attempts in Jammu and Kashmir’s Kathua have identified the terrorists as belonging to JeM.
“NATO weapons were recovered from them, including M4A1 assault rifles and Glock handguns,” the senior intelligence operative said, referring to the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation.
In the case of LeT terrorists, weapons recovered from them were either of Pakistan Ordnance Factories or Chinese-made, sources said. Of the approximately 120 terrorists hiding in Jammu and Kashmir, 95 per cent are foreigners and all have allegiance with JeM, sources said.
The widening rift between these two terrorist groups is useful for Indian security agencies operating in the Union Territory. In a recent case, the location of terrorists hiding in southern Kashmir was leaked by a rival group. In another case, a man kidnapped by the LeT later turned out to be a JeM terrorist.
“India is reworking its strategies and operations due to these new dynamics,” another officer told NDTV, requesting anonymity.
“After Jaish was pushed out by [Pervez] Musharraf, they operated along the Pakistan and Afghanistan border, but mainly remained confined to Nuristan and Kunar provinces of Afghanistan. After Imran Khan came to power, they were allowed to enter Pakistan,” the officer, who monitors this region, said.
“Jaish has increased its presence around Bhawalpur in the last few years. That marked the point when the rift between Lashkar and Jaish began to widen,” the officer said, adding despite the Pakistani army trying to broker peace between the two terror groups, both have started targeting each other openly.
“To end the rivalry that is affecting the internal dynamics in Pakistan, their army is providing the terrorists a safe passage to cross over to Jammu and Kashmir,” the officer said, referring to the doubling of infiltration attempts in recent times.
The terrorists are sneaking into India from tunnels, riverine areas, and by cutting fences, a police officer said. The terrorists infiltrate into India with bare minimum logistics. They find it difficult to find supplies once they are in the Jammu region, the officer said.
On Sunday night, residents alerted the security forces about the movement of three suspected terrorists in Kathua.
“The suspicious men asked for food from some villagers, after which we were alerted,” the police officer said.
The police managed to strengthen its human intelligence (HUMINT) resources on the ground in the last one year, and that is giving results now as proven by the recent tip offs from villagers. The Ministry of Home Affairs has ordered the security forces and intelligence operatives to increase vigil all along the Line of Control and the International Border (IB).
“Additional Border Security Force troops are being deployed along the IB. A second layer of security force is being strengthened,” a police officer said.
Union Home Minister Amit Shah is scheduled to visit the Jammu region this week, amid the ongoing anti-terror operations in Kathua. Mr Shah will chair a security review meeting to assess the situation and may also visit some forward areas.