NEW DELHI: In a massive crackdown on terror funding, the National Investigation Agency (NIA) on Saturday raided multiple locations belonging to separatist leaders in Delhi, Haryana and the Kashmir Valley. At least Rs 1.5 crore in cash, incriminating documents, letterheads of the Lashkar-e-Toiba (LeT) and Hijbul Mujahideen (HM), pen drives and laptops were seized, said agency sleuths.
According to official sources, Hurriyat leader Raja Kalwal and recently-suspended Hurriyat leader Naeem Khan were among those whose locations were raided. In all, 14 locations in Srinagar and at least eight in Delhi and Haryana were raided.
The NIA had registered a Preliminary Enquiry, which was converted into a Regular Case (RC) on Friday evening, before searches at residences of separatist leaders began in the Valley in the wee hours on Saturday, said sources, adding that the premises of around eight hawala dealers and traders in the national capital were also raided. NIA teams are also searching two locations in Sonepat in this connection.
Last month, NIA officials who visited Srinagar to probe alleged funding by Pakistan for illegal activities in Kashmir questioned separatist leaders regarding their involvement in raising, collecting and transferring funds through hawala and other channels to fund terror activities in Kashmir. Farooq Ahmed Dar alias Bitta Karate and Gazi Javed Baba were among the leaders questioned.
The NIA has collected details of 13 accused who were charge sheeted in recent cases in the Valley pertaining to damaging schools and public property as part of a larger conspiracy to perpetuate violence in Kashmir.
This is the first time since the early 1990s that a Central probe agency has carried out raids in connection with terror funding to separatists for subversive activities in the Valley.