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.