Massive Police Crackdown In Kashmir: Raids At 200 Locations, Hundreds Detained (Image: X/ LikhaPadhi)
The Jammu and Kashmir Police on Wednesday carried out raids across more than 200 locations in South Kashmir’s Kulgam district as part of an ongoing operation against what it described as a “terror support network”.
The searches, as per The Indian Express report, were primarily focused on members and associates of the Jamaat-e-Islami (JeI), an organisation that has been banned since 2019.
According to police officials, the raids were part of a “sustained effort to dismantle the terror ecosystem and its support structure at the grassroots level.” Over the past four days, security forces have conducted nearly 400 cordon-and-search operations in Kulgam alone.
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The latest sweep follows the recent busting of an alleged terror module in Faridabad and Saharanpur, whose members were reportedly from Kashmir, and comes amid investigations into the Red Fort blast, suspected to have been carried out by Pulwama resident Dr Umar Nabi. However, police have not confirmed any direct link between that incident and the current operations.
Officials said that after the raids, around 500 individuals affiliated with banned groups, including JeI and JKNOPs, were questioned, with many shifted to District Jail Mattan in Anantnag under preventive detention laws.
Similar raids were also conducted in Sopore, Ganderbal, and Awantipora, where police said they were targeting the “separatist ecosystem.”
In Sopore alone, searches were carried out at over 30 locations, and several people are being interrogated to verify their involvement in unlawful activities.
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During the raids, police claim to have recovered a “large quantity of incriminating material,” including documents, digital devices, and printed content linked to the banned outfit. The seized material is being analysed, while several suspects remain under detention for questioning.
Police described the operations as a “crucial part” of their preventive strategy to dismantle the ideological, financial, and logistical networks supporting terrorism in the region.
Over the past week, officials said, more than 1,500 people have been picked up for questioning across the Kashmir Valley as part of ongoing counter-terror measures.
(With inputs from The Indian Express)
