New Delhi, Feb 13 (KNS) : In a major blow to the terror ecosystem in the Valley, a special court of the National Investigation Agency (NIA) in Delhi on Friday sentenced two overground workers (OGWs) of the Pakistan-backed Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) to 15 years of rigorous imprisonment for harbouring a Pakistani terrorist.
The convicted individuals, identified as Zahoor Ahmed Peer and Nazeer Ahmad Peer, both residents of Handwara in Kupwara district, were found guilty of providing shelter, food, and logistical support to a heavily armed infiltrator from Pakistan.
According to an official release from the NIA, the court convicted the duo under Sections 18 and 19 of the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, sentencing them to 15 years of imprisonment. They were also handed a nine-year sentence under Section 39 of the same Act. All sentences will run concurrently, and each accused has been fined a total of Rs 1.5 lakh.
The case pertains to a larger LeT conspiracy in 2016, involving Pakistani terrorist Bahadur Ali @ Saifullah, who infiltrated into Kupwara district. Ali was equipped with sophisticated arms, night vision devices, and explosives. While two of his accomplices—Abu Saad and Abu Darda—were neutralized by security forces in an encounter, Bahadur Ali was arrested on July 25, 2016.
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The NIA had initially filed a chargesheet against the Pakistani terrorist in January 2017. Following his guilty plea, Bahadur Ali was convicted in March 2021. However, a subsequent investigation revealed the role of the local support network.
Investigations revealed that the two Handwara residents not only provided safe haven to the Pakistani terrorist but also facilitated his meetings with other LeT operatives active in the Kashmir Valley at the time. The terrorist was in constant touch with handlers in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK), receiving instructions to carry out a series of attacks in Jammu & Kashmir and other parts of India, including the national capital.
The Peer duo were arrested in September 2017 and chargesheeted by the NIA in March 2018. The court pronounced them convicted on December 18, 2025, with the quantum of sentence being decided on Friday.
The NIA termed the conviction a "massive setback" to the overground worker network operating in Kashmir, emphasizing that it dismantled a crucial node of the terror supply chain that enables Pakistani terrorists to operate on Indian soil. (KNS)