ISIS in Kashmir: The writing was on the wall

From designing its own currency to telling its men to record videos of the Kashmir struggle. The ISIS has been sending out signals for long where the Kashmir Valley is concerned. For the first time on Sunday the group claimed its first ever attack in the Valley and this signalled the official entry of another terror group into the troubled Valley of Kashmir.

Recently the National Investigation Agency had filed a chargesheet against an operative known as Sirajuddin.

The investigation conducted by the NIA suggest that Sirajjuddin and his associates had planned on carrying out a series of attacks. There was a two pronged plan. While one was to undertake lone wolf attacks the other was to establish the Caliphate in Kashmir.

If one looks closely at the map designed by the ISIS, it has portions of Gujarat in it and the whole of Jammu and Kashmir. Sirajjudin who makes references to this feels that it is only through Kashmir that they can establish the outfit. He felt that Kashmir must be governed not by India or Pakistan, but the Islamic Caliphate as is the claim of the outfit in Syria.

Interestingly in one of the chats he shares an image of a note in the 20 denomination. The note has the letters, ISIS Welcomes you to Kashmir. This according him should be the official currency of Kashmir.

Sirajuddin in a chat with one UAE operative says that he has managed to gather 300 recruits for the ISIS. This is a claim which the NIA doubts.

He constantly speaks about overcoming the Hindus in India and says that over a period of time, the Constitution should be replaced with the Caliphate. further he seeks out information on how to reach Syria. He felt that he should train for sometime in Syria and then return to India.

A new directive:

Recently the ISIS issued a new directive to its fighters in Kashmir. Two groups supporting the ISIS on Telegram advised the pro-ISIS fighters to organise and assign duties in the Valley.

The ISIS wants its fighters to assess the battlefield in Kashmir. It has advised the fighters to assign duties such as raising funds and also photographing and recording the battle in the Valley.

An Intelligence Bureau official said that this message to the ISIS fighters in the Valley is an indicator that they want to assess the situation and trying building a force. The part where the ISIS says that it wants the battle recorded may be a way of trying to understand the strategy adopted in the Valley.

OneIndia News