The Jammu and Kashmir Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha dismissed three J&K government employees due to links with terror outfits. The three employees are at present in jail, serving time in different terror-related cases. Among the three, one employee was identified as Firdous Ahmed Bhat, a Jammu and Kashmir Police constable who used to work for Lashkar (a terrorist outfit) while he was in the service.
The other two employees have been identified as a teacher and a forest department staff. The major action terminating them was taken after a security review meeting chaired by LG Sinha.
In the meeting, he had directed the police and security agencies to intensify anti-terrorism operations to neutralise terrorists and the terror network behind the scenes. The LG had also said that those supporting and financing terrorism will have to pay a very heavy price.
"Every perpetrator and supporter of terrorism will have to pay the price for it. We need to be equipped with reliable intelligence and work more effectively to neutralise terrorists and ensure the safety of citizens," LG Sinha said.
Firdous Ahmed Bhat a terrorist aide while being in the police
Firdous Ahmad Bhat was appointed as SPO in 2005 and became constable in 2011. He was arrested in May 2024. He is lodged in Kot Bhalwal jail. Notably, after being confirmed as constable, Firdous Bhat was posted in the sensitive post of the
Electronic Surveillance Unit in Jammu and Kashmir Police. However, he started working for the terror outfit Lashkar-e-Taiba. Firdous Bhat was exposed in May 2024 when two terrorists- Wasim Shah and Adnan Beg were arrested with pistols and hand grenades in Anantnag.
Investigation revealed that Firdous Bhat had tasked two other local LeT terrorists- Omas and Aqib to provide arms and ammunition to Wasim and Adnan for carrying out terror attacks on non-locals and tourists visiting Anantnag. During interrogation, he confessed to his crime and said that he was a close associate of Sajid Jatt who helped him operate a large terror network from Pakistan.
Nisar Ahmed Khan, forest department staff who aided terrorists
Nisar Ahmad Khan joined the Forest Department as an assistant in 1996. He was posted as an orderly at the Forest Range Office in Verinag, Anantnag. According to investigators, he secretly joined Hizbul Mujahideen and started collaborating with separatist forces. He used to spy for the terrorist organization Hizbul Mujahideen. His links with Hizbul Mujahideen first came to light in the year 2000 when a landmine exploded in Chamaran in Anantnag district. This attack was carried out by Hizbul Mujahideen in which the then-Power Minister of Jammu and Kashmir, Ghulam Hassan Bhat, was killed.
Khan and another accused had provided logistical support to the terrorists to kill the then-minister and two policemen. He also helped smuggle the RDX used in the blast and coordinated the terror attack. He was arrested and chargesheeted but later acquitted in 2006 due to witnesses turning hostile and an intimidating atmosphere inside and outside the courts. "Even officials and witnesses were reluctant to testify in court against people like Nasir," security officials said. His involvement in several terror incidents was also exposed in later days.
Teacher turned Lashkar's worker
Ashraf Bhat, a resident of Reasi, was appointed as a Rehbar-e-Taleem teacher in 2008. He was then regularized and made a permanent teacher in June 2013. While working as a teacher, Ashraf took the oath of allegiance to Lashkar-e-Taiba and became an aide. His activities were detected in the year 2022 and he was arrested and is currently lodged in the district jail of Reasi. During the investigation, it was revealed that Ashraf Bhat's handler was the most wanted Lashkar terrorist Mohammad Qasim, who lives in Pakistan.
According to sources, Lashkar-e-Taiba found him very useful because as a teacher, Ashraf Bhat was best suited to radicalise youth and carry out terror activities under the guise of a respectable profession. He helped Lashkar-e-Taiba in raising funds for terror activities and coordinating the transportation of arms, ammunition and explosives.