Delhi Police score big success, nab 4 JeM terrorists, explosives

New Delhi, Feb 4 (UNI) In a major success soon after an incident-free Republic Day, the Delhi Police today foiled a major attack in the capital with the arrest of four Jaish-e-Mohammad (JeM) terrorists, including their Pakistani contact, near the Connaught Place area after a fierce encounter and recovered a large quantity of explosives from them.

''Four activists of the JeM were arrested near the Deen Dayal Upadhaya Park on Minto Road near Connaught Place in the New Delhi police area after an encounter,'' Jt Commisioner of Police (Special Cell) Karnail Singh told mediapersons at the site.

The four were arrested by the police after the encounter at around 2100 hrs. The arrested have been identified as Pakistani citizen Shahid Ghafoor, and Bashir Ahmad, Fayyaz Lone and Abdul Majid -- all residents of Kashmir.

However, there were no casualties in the encounter.

Mr Singh said that their arrest was the result of intelligence sharing between Delhi Police, state police and intelligence agencies but expressed inability to elaborate further on the process.

Terming it a major success, he said the arrest of four terrorists alive could lead to a great amount of information being obtained.

He said the three Kashmiris had come to Delhi from Jammu with the explosives on the Malwa Express, while the Pakistani citizen, a resident of Sialkot, had met them here. Though the three had brought most of the explosives with them, a weapon had also been recovered from Ghafoor, he said.

Queried about their likely target, the Jt Commissioner said that the quantity of explosives recovered from them indicated that their intentions were ''not pure.'' He said that interrogation of the four was on to ascertain their exact objective.

''The team that arrested them after the encounter is engaged in interrogating them and we hope to obtain some major leads,'' he said, adding that central intelligence agencies would also be involved in the interrogation process.

Asked about why the police had allowed the terrorists to reach the national capital, Mr Singh said it was their endeavour to bust as large a module as possible.

''Thankfully, we obtained and developed information in time allowing us to effect the arrests. Had we just arrested the three, there was a possibility that their contact -- the Pakistani citizen -- could have escaped,'' he said.

Police recovered a large haul of explosives including three kilos of deadly RDX, four detonators, a timer and six hand grenades from them, apart from 10,000 US dollars, and Rs 50,000 in Indian currency.

Delhi PCC president Ram Babu Sharma also reached the site and said he wanted to congratulate the police personnel who had participated in the operation.

UNI