ED, NIA to attach Shabir Shah’s assets

New Delhi: After a spate of raids on separatist leaders in Jammu and Kashmir, the central investigative agencies — Enforcement Directorate (ED) and National Investigation Agency (NIA) — are now set to tighten screws by initiating attachment of assets, worth several crores, to them.

“The ED will attach Shabir Shah’s assets under stringent provisions of the money laundering Act. The NIA will attach the properties of the separatist leaders under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act. Both agencies have  identified their properties which will be attached,” sources said.

The investigative agencies were also in touch with certain banks in J&K to get details about their bank accounts and fixed deposits, they said, adding that these would be attached, too.

The ED is investigating a money laundering case for alleged terror financing against Shah.

The agency recently arrested Srinagar-based Mohammad Aslam Wani, an alleged hawala dealer, in connection with the case against Shah, who is in judicial custody.

Earlier on August 3, a Delhi court had allowed the ED custody of Shah after the agency alleged that he was “ruining” the country by using money to fund terror.

Shah was arrested by the ED a day after several Hurriyat leaders were taken into custody by the NIA in a case of alleged terror funding in the Valley to fuel unrest.

Investigating agencies like the NIA have cracked down on Hurriyat leaders like Syed Ali Shah Geelani’s son-in-law Altaf Ahmed Shah, also known as Altaf Fantoosh, and six other Kashmiri separatists.

Hafeez Saeed, the Pakistan-based chief of the Jamaat-ul Dawah, the front of the banned Lashker-e-Tayyaba (LeT), has been named in the NIA’s FIR as an accused, besides organisations such as Hurriyat Conference (factions led by Geelani and Mirwaiz Farooq), Hizbul Mujahideen (HM) and Dukhtaran-e-Milat.

The houses of those arrested were earlier raided by NIA sleuths as part of the agency’s efforts at clamping down on separatist groups, allegedly receiving funds for subversive activities in the Valley.

“The NIA sleuths had recovered account books, `2 crore in cash and letterheads of banned terror groups, including of the LeT and HM, during the raids. The NIA has identified several moveable and immoveable assets of the accused and these will soon be attached under the UAPA,” sources said.