30 November,2010 07:11 AM IST | | J Dey
Anti-Terrorism Squad to run background checks after arrested Lashkar duo confess they tried to induct members for jihad
BE extra cautious if your watchman or driver is a Kashmiri.
The arrest of two suspected Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) operatives in Thane recently has made the Anti-Terrorism Squad (ATS) jittery about the presence of several sleeper cells here, which can be activated anytime to launch attacks on sensitive locations.
"The arrested accused were instructed by their LeT handlers to gather details on oil installations in Maharashtra, Gujarat and Rajasthan and military installations in Mumbai, Pune and Aurangabad," Additional Director General of Police Rakesh Maria said yesterday.
The duo confessed to having launched an aggressive campaign of indoctrination to try and induct well-informed volunteers into the LeT fold.
The incident assumes significance in light of the fact that a large number of Kashmiris have been coming into the city to work as watchmen. Private security agencies have shown willingness to employ them as they carry licensed weapons issued to them in the troubled state.
Arrest
The matter came to the fore after ATS officials nabbed the duo near Suncity Bar and Restaurant at the Kapurbavdi junction in Thane on November 15.
The suspects have been identified as Mohammed Shareef Makhandeen Thakker (33) and Mohammad Isaq Mohammad Rashid Kumlakh (29). They are residents of Gakhrot village in the Rajouri district of Jammu & Kashmir.
"Investigations indicate Kumlakh and Thakker were oil tanker drivers and were employed with N N Sons at Talsari in Thane. They were instructed to recruit drivers who could be induced to work for LeT in carrying out terror attacks," added Maria.
The ATS is now running background checks on Kashmiris in the city, particularly drivers and watchmen, to ensure they do not have links with terror outfits, Maria confirmed.
Recovery
Maria said two 9 mm Tokarev pistols and 11 live rounds were recovered from the suspects, who have been booked under the Arms Act.
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They confessed that they were heading for terror training in Pakistan Occupied Kashmir to train under ISI officials.
3
The number of states in which the duo was allegedly planning attacks on oil installations
