J&K Police arrest OGW connected to Jammu IED attack conspiracy

The Jammu and Kashmir police said it arrested an Overground Worker (OGW) of Al-Badr outfit in connection with a bombing attempt at the Jammu bus stand. On February 13, police had said that it thwarted a bomb attack when it recovered seven kilograms of IED from the possession of a nursing student at the Jammu bus stand.

Srinagar: Days after police in Jammu claimed to have thwarted an improvised explosive device (IED) detonation, police today said it arrested an Overground Worker (OGW) of Al-Badr outfit in connection with the case.

A police spokesperson said Rah Hussain Bhat, a resident of Batbagh-Hunipora village of Nehama in south Kashmir's Pulwama district, was arrested from his home.

"He is an OGW and motivator of Al-Badr terror outfit and is involved in a conspiracy of providing logistics support to Al-Badr terrorist outfit. He is in direct contact with Pakistan handlers involved in the conspiracy to carry out IED attack at Jammu," the spokesman said.

On February 13, police in Jammu had said that it thwarted a bomb attack when it recovered seven kilograms of IED from the possession of a nursing student at the Jammu bus stand.

Director-General of Police (DGP) Dilbagh Singh in a press conference had said on February 14 that the militants wanted to set off an explosion at Jammu bus stand, on the second anniversary of the 2019 Pulwama terror attack.

Police arrested Suhail Bashir Shah, a resident of Newa village of Pulwama, who was pursuing a nursing course in a college in Chandigarh.

Singh had said that Shah was assigned the task to plant the IED in Jammu by his Pakistan-based handler affiliated with Al-Badr terror outfit.

"He was given four targets, including (the famous) Ragunath mandir, bus stand, railway station and Lakhdata bazar (jewellers market) and was scheduled to take a flight to Srinagar after completing his job,” the DGP had told reporters.

Police said that besides Shah, others so far arrested in the case included Athar Shakeel Khan, who was supposed to receive Shah at Srinagar airport, his fellow student from Kashmir Qazi Wasim who was aware of the plan and was picked up from Chandigarh and another associate Abid Nabi who was arrested from Srinagar.