Farooq Ahmad Bhat alias Umar is A+ category terrorist who had joined Hizbul Mujahideen in June 2015. He is believed to have been involved in radicalising and recruiting young Kashmiris to carry out terror strikes.
New Delhi: The security forces are looking for Hizbul Mujahideen commander Farooq Ahmad Bhat, who masterminded a grenade attack at a Jammu bus stand on Thursday that left two people dead and 32 injured.
According to the security agencies, Hizbul Mujahideen's Kulgam district commander Farooq Ahmad Bhat alias Umar had tasked Yasir Bhatt to carry out the terror attack by throwing a grenade at the busy bus stand in Jammu.
The grenade attack came just three weeks after the Pulwama massacre on February 14 that saw nearly 50 Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) jawans being killed. It was the biggest terrorist strike on the security forces in Jammu and Kashmir and brought India and Pakistan on brink of war.
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Acting swiftly, Jammu police arrested Bhatt, a Kashmiri youth radicalised by top Hizbul commanders. Bhatt is a resident of Pulwama, who was trying to escape back into the Valley after throwing the grenade when he was nabbed by the police.
CCTV footage near the bus stand played a crucial lead in identifying and arresting the attacker. The footage was immediately flashed to all police stations of Jammu and the terrorist was arrested at the Ban toll post in Nagrota on the Jammu-Srinagar highway while he was returning to Kashmir.
According to top sources, Umar had incited and trained Bhatt to throw the grenade. Even Jammu police confirmed that the Bhatt was with Umar. During interrogation, Bhatt said he had procured the grenade from Umar in Kulgam and reached Jammu on Thursday morning.
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Sources said that Umar is A+ category terrorist who had joined the banned terror outfit Hizbul Mujahideen in June 2015. He is believed to have been involved in radicalising and recruiting young Kashmiris to carry out terror strikes. He also trains young terrorists in the Valley and instigates them to act against the security forces.
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