India's Ministry of Home Affairs has unmasked another Pakistan based terrorist who has spent years plotting attacks against the country. The man has been identified as Mufti Mohammad Asghar Khan, the mastermind behind the attack on an Indian Army camp in Nagrota, Jammu, who is now running a terror training camp from Pakistan occupied Kashmir, or PoK. Within terror circles he is also known by the aliases Abu Saad and Saad Jimmy.
Who is Mufti Mohammad Asghar Khan
According to security agencies, Asghar Khan is an active member of the banned outfit Jaish-e-Mohammed and operates for the group from Pakistan occupied Kashmir. He holds two key positions there, he is the Jaish-e-Mohammed amir in PoK and also heads the outfit's terror wing, which gives him significant influence within the organisation. Agencies say he has played a direct role in recruiting new fighters, training them and hatching fresh conspiracies against India. Investigations have also revealed that he runs a terrorist training camp in Muzaffarabad, where newly recruited fighters are prepared for future operations.
What the camps in PoK actually teach
Security agencies say that camps run under commanders like Asghar Khan do not just indoctrinate recruits with radical ideology, they also provide hands on training in handling weapons, using explosives and crossing the border to infiltrate into India. Agencies believe that terrorists trained at these camps have repeatedly been sent into India to carry out major attacks, underlining how methodically the cross border terror infrastructure has been built and maintained.
His direct role in the Nagrota attack conspiracy
Mufti Mohammad Asghar Khan's name figures among the main conspirators of the terror attack on the Indian Army camp in Nagrota, Jammu. Investigating agencies say he played a key role right from planning the attack to extending every kind of support to the attackers, which is why he has remained on the radar of Indian security agencies for a long time. Intelligence agencies also say Asghar Khan is not limited to plotting attacks alone, he also works to strengthen the Jaish-e-Mohammed network and channel financial support to it, allowing the outfit's roots to spread even deeper.
Home Ministry names 23 more terrorists
The Home Ministry has made it clear that it follows a policy of zero tolerance towards terrorism, and that security agencies are continuously monitoring terror networks operating from across the border. As part of the effort to dismantle these networks at their roots, the ministry has begun publicly identifying such terrorists. Along with Mufti Mohammad Asghar Khan, the ministry has revealed the names and faces of 23 other terrorists. The list also includes Masood Ilyas Kashmiri and Mohammad Musadiq, both of whom carry equally dangerous track records.
Who are Masood Ilyas Kashmiri and Mohammad Musadiq
Masood Ilyas Kashmiri is the terrorist who carried out the attack on a naka party stationed near the PDP office in the Sunjwan area of Jammu in April 2022. Mohammad Musadiq, on the other hand, has been identified as the launching commander of the Lasanwakot sector, responsible for pushing terrorists into India through tunnels dug along the border. Agencies say he has also been involved in sending consignments of weapons and ammunition into India using drones. Beyond that, Mohammad Musadiq is said to have carried out reconnaissance of sensitive sites including the Ram Janmabhoomi temple complex in Ayodhya, the RSS headquarters in Nagpur and the IOCL refinery in Panipat, pointing to the scale on which these terror outfits have been planning attacks inside India.
