Truck driver ferrying JeM militants cousin of Pulwama suicide bomber: DGP

"The truck driver ferrying Jaish-e-Mohammed militants to Kashmir is the cousin of Pulwama suicide bomber Adil Dar who killed 40 CRPF personnel last year," said Dilbag Singh, DGP, Jammu and Kashmir.

Jammu: Jammu and Kashmir Director General of Police Dilbag Singh on Friday said the truck driver ferrying Jaish-e-Mohammed militants to Kashmir is the cousin of Pulwama suicide bomber Adil Dar who killed 40 CRPF personnel last year.

Three JeM militants were killed on Friday in a fierce gunbattle with police at a toll plaza on the Jammu-Srinagar national highway, officials said. The militants were travelling in a truck towards the Kashmir Valley.

"The truck driver (the main handler) was identified as Sameer Dar of Pulwama. His brother Manzoor Dar was killed in 2016. He is the cousin of Adil Dar," Singh told to the media here.

He said the truck driver, along with the conductor and another over ground worker (OGW), was arrested and is being interrogated.

Singh said Dar picked up the terrorists around 2 am in the Dayala Chak area of Hiranagar sector of Kathua district after they crossed into this side from across the International Border (IB).

A group of three-four militants were intercepted at the Bann toll plaza, about 28 km from Jammu city when they were trying to enter the Kashmir valley on the truck.

One of the terrorists was killed in the ensuing gunfight while the others managed to escape to the nearby forest area, Singh said. A policeman was injured in the incident.

He said the militants belonged to Pakistan-based JeM.

Weapons, including a sniper rifle, and the large quantity of ammunition and explosives have been recovered, the DGP said.

(PTI)