Mass Arrests in Kashmir Following Explosion in Delhi

India’s security forces have launched a large-scale crackdown in Kashmir following a blast in Delhi. Over the past week, more than 200 locations in the region have been raided, and several hundred suspects have been detained.

The operation, aimed at dismantling an alleged ‘armed support network’ in Kashmir, has seen intensive actions by local police. In a statement on Wednesday, the police revealed that raids had been carried out across more than 200 locations targeting members of the Jammu and Kashmir-based Jamaat-e-Islami (JEI) group, which has been banned in India since 2019.

A spokesperson for the Jammu and Kashmir Police confirmed that more than 200 raids were conducted in a single day across the Kulgam district on Wednesday. In the past four days, over 400 cordon-and-search operations have been carried out throughout South Kashmir.

The raids are taking place at a time when authorities claim to have dismantled a terrorist network involving Kashmiri members in Faridabad and Saharanpur. Furthermore, Dr Umar Nabi, a resident of Pulwama, is being investigated as a suspect in connection with the explosion near Delhi’s Red Fort. However, officials have stated that no direct link has been found between these operations and the blast.

The statement from the police added, “As part of efforts to dismantle the terrorist network and its grassroots infrastructure, raids have been conducted at the homes and offices of JEI members and their associates.”

Following the raids in Kulgam, nearly 500 individuals with ties to the banned group JEI and other organisations have been interrogated. Many of them have been transferred to Anantnag district’s Mattan jail under preventive detention laws.

On the same day, over 30 locations in North Kashmir’s Sopore district were searched. Police reported that the operation was conducted due to the presence of separatist networks, and several individuals are being questioned regarding their involvement in illegal activities.

Similar operations were carried out in Gandarbal and Awantipora, targeting areas associated with Jamaat-e-Islami. Authorities claimed to have recovered a large number of “criminal documents, digital devices, and printed materials directly linked to banned organisations.”

Police noted that these actions are part of a long-term strategy to disrupt the infrastructure of terrorism and separatism by severing their financial, ideological, and logistical connections.

Over the past week, more than 1,500 people have been detained across the valley for questioning.

Source: The Indian Express