Major Legal Action Under UAPA Against Cross-Border Terror Handlers
In a major drive aimed at dismantling the infrastructure supporting terrorism in Jammu and Kashmir, the local police force, in coordination with civil administration and revenue authorities, has attached land and immovable properties belonging to five key terror handlers operating from across the border in Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Jammu and Kashmir (PoJK). The crackdown is part of an ongoing strategy to choke financial, logistical, and material support to terrorist organizations operating within the Union Territory.
The executive action was carried out under the stringent provisions of Section 25 of the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA) after obtaining explicit attachment orders from competent judicial courts. Officials revealed that the targeted individuals had exfiltrated to Pakistan years ago to undergo arms training and subsequently took up key roles as handlers, orchestrating radicalization, recruitment, and weapon smuggling into the Kashmir Valley and Jammu region.
Identification and Seizure of Properties Across Key Districts
The crackdown spanned several districts in Jammu and Kashmir, where police teams executed court mandates in the presence of local revenue officials and executive magistrates. Land records were scrutinized to pinpoint properties registered in the names of the accused terror operatives. Red notices and legal property attachment signboards were erected directly at the sites to prevent any land transfer, lease, or sale.
Among those targeted were long-time terror operatives affiliated with proscribed groups like Hizbul Mujahideen and Lashkar-e-Taiba. The attached assets comprise multiple kanals of prime agricultural and commercial land valued at lakhs of rupees. Local authorities confirmed that the physical possession of these properties has been placed under state control, effectively stripping the absconding terror handlers of their inherited or acquired assets in their home villages.
Neutralizing Cross-Border Networks and Stopping Radicalization
According to senior police officials, the accused handlers have been actively engaged in reviving local terror modules from Pakistan. Leveraging encrypted messaging platforms and social media channels, these individuals continuously attempt to recruit vulnerable youth, arrange logistics for active militants, and coordinate weapon and explosive drops via drones along the border.
By seizing their immovable properties, security forces aim to send a strong message to absconding militants and their local sympathizers. Law enforcement agencies emphasized that harboring, facilitating, or supporting cross-border handlers will lead to severe legal and financial consequences, including the permanent forfeiture of properties under anti-terror laws.
Court-Declared Proclaimed Offenders Face Financial Isolation
All five terror handlers had previously been declared Proclaimed Offenders by designated special courts after ignoring multiple summonses and arrest warrants to face trial in various terror-related cases. Despite remaining at large across the border, legal proceedings against them continued under the newly strengthened legal frameworks.
Police authorities affirmed that this property attachment drive is not an isolated event but a sustained campaign. Similar intelligence-led operations are underway across other districts of Jammu and Kashmir to identify and freeze assets belonging to all terror operatives residing in Pakistan, ensuring that their financial roots in India are completely severed.
