Srinagar: National Investigating Agency (NIA) Wesnesday arrested a key conspirator in the killing of Parihar brothers of Kishtwar.
A statement of the NIA issued here said that it arrested 51-year-old Malik Noor Muhammad Fayaz, son of late Abdul Razaq Malik of village Phagsoo, Doda in NIA case No RC-36/2018/NIA/DLI.
The probe agency said the case was initially registered as FIR No 290/2018 dated 1 November 2018 at Police Station Kishtwar relating to the killing of Anil Kumar Parihar and his brother Ajit Kumar Parihar of Main Bazar Kishtwar by unknown criminals who fired at them while they were returning home around 8:40 pm.
NIA had re-registered the case as RC-36/2018/NIA/DLI dated 28 November 2018 and taken over the investigation.
NIA had earlier charge sheeted seven accused persons including three killed militants of Hizb-ul-Mujahideen, Osama-bin-Javid, Haroon Abbas Wani, Zahid Hussain and four arrested accused persons Nisar Ahmed Sheikh, Nishad Ahmad Butt, Azad Hussain Bagwan and Rustam Ali, all residents of Kishtwar in NIA Special Court, Jammu on 15 May 2020.
The NIA said further investigation in the case to unearth the larger conspiracy hatched by the militants of HM and overground workers (OGW) who were reviving militancy in the region of Chenab valley led to the identification of arrested accused Malik Noor Muhammad Fayyaz.
It said that the investigation has revealed that he was the co-conspirator for reviving militancy in Chenab valley.
The NIA said he had also visited Assam and Nagaland along with slain HM militant Osama-bin-Javid for procurement of the weapons for this purpose.
It said that he was instrumental in motivating and recruiting gullible Muslim youth to join the cadres of HM. The NIA said that the arrested accused Malik Noor Muhammad Fayyaz was produced in NIA Special Court, Jammu on Wednesday and taken in NIA custody for three days.