Kashmir Bound Turkish Pistol Seized in Jammu, Srinagar Man Arrested

JAMMU: Jammu police said it has thwarted a major terror plot to carry out selective killings in the Kashmir valley with the recovery of three sophisticated pistols, including one made in Turkiye, and the arrest of an operative identified as Azan Hameed Gazi.

Gazi, a resident of Hilalabad, Qamarwari in Srinagar, was apprehended by Nagrota police at the TCP Naka on Bypass Nagrota last night while travelling from Jammu to Srinagar in a Toyota Etios car.

According to a report published in Daily Excelsior, Gazi had picked up the consignment of weapons from near ASCOMS Hospital Sidhra and was en route to deliver them at Chanpora in Srinagar, from where another operative was to collect them before handing them over to militants. Police recovered three pistols (one Turkish, one Chinese, and a third with no markings but described as highly sophisticated), three empty magazines, eight live cartridges, and two empty cartridges from a handbag concealed under the co-driver’s seat.

Sources quoted by the newspaper revealed a new modus operandi being employed by insurgents, where operatives work in isolation without knowing each other or their handlers. Gazi, allegedly a drug-addict, was working for money and had no knowledge of the handler who tasked him, nor did he know how the consignment reached Sidhra. It is suspected the weapons came from across the border and were left in a forested area. This strategy aims to prevent the entire network from being busted if one operative is caught.
The Tribune, in its report, also confirmed the arrest and recovery of the arms, stating that the pistols were likely smuggled from Pakistan for targeted killings in the Kashmir valley.

Police believe that this recovery has foiled a major terror plot for selective killings. Further investigations are underway to trace the origin of the weapons, how the consignment was shifted to Sidhra, and to identify those involved in the broader network, including who picked up cash that Gazi had previously transported to Jammu.

A case has been registered under Sections 3 and 25 of the Arms Act at Nagrota police station, and Gazi remains in custody.