On Thursday, the National Investigation Agency (NIA) arrested a former BJP sarpanch in connection with a case related to suspend Deputy Superintendent of Police Davinder Singh who was caught while ferrying terrorists outside the Kashmir valley.
The accused, identified as Tariq Mir, a resident of Maldoora of Shopian district in south Kashmir, was the fifth person arrested in the case which came to light when Singh was arrested along with three terrorists including a most wanted Hizbul Mujahideen commander in January this year.
Mir, who was elected as Sarpanch on a National Conference ticket, had contested the 2014 assembly elections in the erstwhile state from Wachi assembly seat in South Kashmir on a BJP ticket. He secured a little over 1,000 votes in the election. The NIA produced him before a special court here that remanded him to six days in the agency's custody after it was alleged that he had been indulging in arms supply to various terror groups operating in the valley and also had links with Singh.
The NIA, which has been carrying out investigations even during the time when the entire world is battling the novel coronavirus, is hopeful of getting more links during his interrogation.
Singh was arrested along with Hizbul Mujahideen commander Naveed Babu, his close associate and a lawyer who was working as an overground worker for terrorists at Mir Bazar on the Srinagar-Jammu National Highway on January 11, while they were on their way to Jammu.
A large quantity of arms and ammunition were recovered from the house of Singh in Srinagar, right next to the Army's XV corps headquarters at Badami Bagh cantonment, where he had sheltered the trio before leaving for Jammu.
