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Jaish takes a new name to beat the ban

Jaish takes a new name to beat the ban

Author: Times News Network and PTI
Publication: The Times of India
Date: February 4, 2002

Unfazed by the ban imposed on it by the U.S. and Pakistan governments, Maulana Masood Azhar's Jaish-e-Mohammad, rechristened as Jamiat-ul-Furkan, threatens to shatter the lull in militant activities in the Valley.

Besides the Jamiat-ul-Furkan, another militant outfit, the Ansar-ul-Islam, has also surfaced in the Valley.

Confirming the activities of the two militant outfits in north Kashmir, senior superintendent of police Showkat Malik said there were no indications that militants operating in north Kashmir had been demoralised by the January 12 speech of Pakistan President Pervez Musharraf.

Mr Malik said the militants here were yet to translate Gen Musharraf's words into action and stop violence.

Intelligence reports suggest that militant-recruiting agencies in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (POK) have floated the Ansar-ul-Islam with former Hizbul Mujahideen chief Master Ahsan Dar at its helm, said Mr Malik.

Ahsan Dar's arrest, in 1997, from a government house at Jawaharnagar in Srinagar had raised many eyebrows. Dar was released after a year and is presently in PoK, according to reports.

When asked what had led to his release, a senior BSF officer said this question could be best answered by the civil authorities.

Meanwhile, the Centre's informal approach to the 23-part Hurriyat Conference to participate in a political process in Jammu and Kashmir appears to have made some headway.

Former divisional commissioner of Kashmir, Wajahat Habibullah, who has been holding back-door negotiations with Hurriyat leaders, will meet external affairs minister Jaswant Singh and the Centre's interlocutor, K.C. Pant, on Monday.

The meeting assumes significance as Mr Habibullah, who used the influence of Hurriyat leaders during the Hazratbal mosque seige in 1993, has held several rounds of informal negotiations in Srinagar m and Delhi with a section of the Hurriyat's leadership.

When contacted, a Hurriyat spokesman neither confirmed nor denied the meetings with Mr Habibullah.

Efforts, to contact Hurriyat chairman Abdul Gani Bhat in Srinagar or senior executive leader Abdul Gani Lone proved futile.

Meanwhile, police and security forces have launched a joint combing operation in the twin border districts of Poonch and Rajouri to wipe out militant groups, believed to be hiding in the hills of the Pir Panjal range.
 


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