Noose tightens around separatists as NIA gathers evidence of anti-national acts

New Delhi, Mar 19: There is enough evidence to show that the separatists of Kashmir have indulged in anti-national operations, officials from the National Investigation Agency said.

The NIA which is probing a terror funding case says that it has recovered heaps of evidence to suggest that funds had come in from abroad and were being used by the separatists to fuel tensions in the Valley.

The NIA has seized property papers, pen drives, bank account details, laptops and mobiles as part of the evidence. The evidence was collected during a February 26 raid at the residences of these separatists.

The NIA would question more separatists in connection with the case. An NIA official tells OneIndia that they propose calling in Yasin Malik for questioning in connection with the case.

The others on the radar of the agency are Mohammad Ashraf Khan, Masarat Alam and Zaffar Akbar Bhat. Evidence is being gathered against these persons and they will be shortly called in for questioning the officer further said.

The NIA is investigating a case related to funding of terror and separatist organisations in Kashmir through hawala channels. The agency last month carried out a series of raids on separatists, including the Mirwaiz.

Ahead of his second notice, the Mirwaiz, during his last Friday sermons, had mentioned about the NIA notice and said from the pulpit of Jama Masjid and said "the NIA wants to know about my hidden treasure, my people are my hidden treasure".

The NIA had questioned two maternal uncles of the Mirwaiz -- Maulvi Manzoor and Maulvi Shafat -- and his close aides last year. Both Manzoor and Shafat are retired senior government officers.

The NIA probe seeks to identify the chain of players behind the financing of terrorist activities, pelting of stones on security forces, burning down of schools and damaging of government establishments.

The case names Hafeez Saeed, Pakistan-based chief of Jamaat-ud-Dawah (JuD), the front for banned Lashker-e-Taiba, as an accused, besides organisations such as the Hurriyat Conference factions led by Geelani and the Mirwaiz, Hizbul Mujahideen and Dukhtaran-e-Millat.