Mirwaiz Farooq’s Murder Case: J&K Police Arrest Two Terrorists After 32-Year Pursuit

The Jammu and Kashmir police arrested two wanted terrorists who had been on the run for their involvement in the assassination of Mirwaiz Farooq. The accused were residing in Nepal and Pakistan for an extended period of time.

Addressing a press conference chaired by RR Swain, Special DG CID Jammu and Kashmir, it was announced that the State Investigation Unit (SIA) successfully carried out a significant operation in which two individuals associated with Hizbul-Mujahideen were apprehended. The arrested terrorists have been identified as Javaid Ahmad Bhat, also known as Ajmal Khan, hailing from Azad Basti Natipora in Srinagar, and Zahoor Ahmad Bhat, also known as Bilal, from Danderkhaw Batamalo, Srinagar.

According to the officials, the arrested duo had gone into hiding in Nepal and Pakistan since committing the murder of Mirwaiz on May 21, 1990.

“The two had gone underground and during all these years were variously hiding in Nepal and Pakistan among other places before surreptitiously returning back to Kashmir few years ago. Maintaining a low profile, changing addresses and shifting residences, they avoided the gaze of law enforcement agencies,” Swain said.

As per the police statement, the arrested individuals are accused in a CBI case. They are now required to stand trial in a designated TADA court in Delhi. Notably, the trial in relation to one of the five accused, namely Ayub Dar, codenamed Ishfaq of Srinagar, has already been concluded, and he is currently serving a life sentence after conviction.

The police has now handed them over to CBI from Srinagar who have taken their and will be taken to Delhi.

“Two other absconding accused terrorists found guilty in the killing of Mirwaiz, Abdullah Bangroo and Abdul Rehman Shigan, got killed in encounters with security forces in the 1990s,” special DG told media.

Mirwaiz Farooq, the head priest of Kashmir was killed by terrorists of Hizbul Mujahideen accusing him of being a ‘peacenik’ and an ‘Indian agent’.

After his killing, a case was registered in Police Station Nageen, Srinagar to investigate the crime. The government had transferred the investigation to CBI on 11 June 1990.

“After a long and arduous legal process of investigation and prosecution, the designated TADA court, in 2009, convicted the only arrested accused Ayub Dar for life. The remaining four remained on run. While two (Abdullah Bangroo and Rehman Shigan) died in encounters, Javaid Bhat and Ayub Bhat managed to evade,” a press release by the police read.

Police further said that before the killing of Mirwaiz, all the five Hizbul-Mujahideen terrorists had gone to Pakistan for terrorist training in 1990. Back in Srinagar, Abdullah Bangroo received instructions in April 1990 from his ISI handler in Pakistan to eliminate Mirwaiz.

Ayub Dar had filed an appeal against his conviction. However, the Division Bench of the Supreme Court upheld his conviction on July 21, 2010.