Arrested Hizbul militants met Salahuddin in PoK

New Delhi, Aug 7(ANI): Two suspected Hizbul Mujahideen militants, who were arrested in Delhi, had been asked by the outfits chief Syed Salahuddin to carry out terror strikes in India.

Javed Ahmed Tantray and Ashiq Ali Bhatt, the alleged militants belonging to Jammu and Kashmir met Salahuddin in terrorist training camps in Pakistan- occupied Kashmir, police claimed.

Joint Commissioner of Police (Special Cell) P N Aggarwal told reporters here on Friday that "A few months back Salahuddin told them that they will be given some important assignment in India in near future."

Police said that the arrested were also regularly had meetings with Salahuddin after their induction in to the outfit in 2003.

The arrests came hours after the government made public intelligence inputs about possible terror strikes in three cities-- Delhi, Hyderabad and Kolkata-ahead of Independence Day celebrations.

Aggarwal said both Tantray and Bhatt, got their arms training in terror camps in Boi and Mansura in PoK.

He explained that during the interrogation Police came to know that both the arrested were instructed by Salahuddin and Hizb Deputy Commander Khalid Saifulla to carry out disturbances in India.

"Shahid a terror recruiting agent in Rawlpindi gave them Rs 40,000 and sent both of them to Nepal by Pakistan Airlines. An unidentified man received them in Kathmandu who took them to Pokhra and later they reached Gorakhpur in Uttar Pradesh. On August 3, they boarded a train to Jammu," a senior police official said.

In Jammu, they contacted another agent Faiyaz who arranged a car for them to travel to Delhi besides arms and ammunition. "They were asked to contact Shahid in Pakistan once they reach Delhi," the official claimed.

Aggarwal said one of the militants after reaching Daryaganj, contacted Shahid from a telephone booth who instructed them to meet one Rizwan in Sarai Kale Khan and follow his directions.

"We sent a team to Sarai Kale Khan but we could not find anyone," he said.

Meanwhile, the alleged militants were remanded to police custody till 17th August by a court. In a brief hearing in the chamber, Chief Metropolitan Magistrate Kaveri Baweja accepted the plea of Delhi police, which had sought their custody for interrogation. (ANI)