Srinagar, Oct 29, CNS: A resident of Multan Pakistan, Abu Qasim alias Abdul Rehman arrived in Kashmir in 2012 and came to lime light after his audacious attack on Army Convoy in Hyderpora Srinagar on June 24, 2013 in which more than 8 Indian Army personnel were killed and 16 were seriously wounded. Soon after the Hyderpora daring attack, Qasim became the top most wanted militant in Kashmir and security agencies used all strategies and formulated different plans to trap or kill him, but everytime he managed to give a slip to the security agencies.
Former Director General of Jammu and Kashmir Police Ashok Prasad in an interview with CNS had labeled Qasim as a dreaded militant and the mastermind of most of the attacks that militants carried out in Kashmir. “Once we will be able to neutralize Qasim, militancy in Kashmir particularly in South Kashmir will receive a jolt and it will die its own death,” Prasad maintained adding that Qasim manage to evade arrest as he frequently change his hideouts.
Besides killing the top cop Altaf Dar, Qasim according to security agencies was also responsible for Udhampur attack in which two BSF personnel were killed and 11 others injured. “He was also involved in Silver Star hotel attack in 2012 and attack on BSF in Pampore 2013. At least seven Border Security Forces (BSF) personnel including an assistant commandant were injured when militants headed by Qasim attacked their convoy in Pampore in 2012,” a police official told CNS.
Carrying a cash reward of Rs 20 lakh on his head, Qasim was active in Kashmir from past three years and was handling almost all the operations of militant outfit Lashkar-e-Toiba. Recently, soon after the Udhmapur attack, National Investigating Agency
had pasted posters in South Kashmir’s Pulwama district declaring a cash reward of Rs 10 lakh for those who will provide inputs about him. “Besides securities agencies in Kashmir, Qasim was on NIA radar and carried a bounty of Rs 1 million on his head.”
Inspector General of Police Kashmir Zone, Syed Javid Mujtaba Gilani said Qasim was working closely with other militant outfits in the state like Hizbul Mujahideen. His death is a big dent to militancy. “He was brain behind all major militant operations in the state.”
A top police official who investigating almost all the attacks carried by Abu Qasim told CNS that he was like a mystery man for the security agencies. “We almost trapped him during a number of search operations but every time he managed to give a slip to us. “He was almost in our hands on 29 august 2012, when he along with his deputy Mudasir Sheikh got trapped in village Brinail in Pirpanchal mountains. As the police and Army laid siege, Qasim fired a rifle grenade towards the troops and fled from the rear end of the village,” he said.
Most of the information about his recent activities came from Muhammed Naved alias Usman who was apprehended after carrying out Udhampur attack. “It helped us a lot in monitoring his movements and plans,” said the police officer.
