NIA to probe Uri, team of 3 arrives

Investigations into the terror attack at an Army camp in Uri, close to the Line of Control (LoC) in which 18 soldiers were killed and over twenty were injured, has been handed over to the National Investigation Agency which has been dealing with important terror cases both in Jammu and Kashmir and other parts of the country.

A team of three NIA officers reached Uri late on Monday evening and examined the spot — Army’s 12 Infantry Brigade headquarters about 102-km northwest of Srinagar — along with senior Army and local police officers.

They are likely to be joined by few more officials and will together operate both from Uri and Srinagar till the completion of the investigation, official sources said.

The NIA will also investigate if the terror module got any local support in terms of providing critical information regarding the Army camp as investigators feel the terrorists were fully aware about the camp and its logistics.

The Army is separately probing the incident, particularly how the militants’ group succeeded in relocating to an important military installation.

Once the NIA formally registers a case in connection with the Uri incident, it will also collect all the material evidence seized by the Army from the spot, including weapons, maps, radio wireless sets. The NIA will also take possession of the bodies of the four killed militants and may even do a DNA test on them.

Sources said the biggest challenge for the NIA in the days ahead will be to prepare a foolproof case highlighting Pakistan’s involvement and provide enough evidence to back its claims.

“Most of the evidence will have to be in form of technical investigations and we will see if we can get something from the two wireless sets seized from the killed terrorists. Maybe from the frequency of these wireless sets we can ascertain whom they were in touch with and also see if we can get some details regarding some e-mail or chat room through which these terrorists were in touch with their handlers,’’ a senior intelligence officer said.

Food packets and medicines with Pakistani markings have already been seized from the spot.

The NIA, which is already handling some of the most important terror attack cases, including the attack on the Pathankot Air Force base and the Udhampur incident, is also investigating the role of terror groups in the ongoing agitation in the Kashmir Valley and funds being routed to the protestors.