Pulwama resident held for grenade attack on Jalandhar police station

The National Investigation Agency (NIA) has arrested a key accused in last year's grenade attack on a police station in Punjab's Jalandhar from Pulwama in Jammu and Kashmir, according to an official statement. The accused has been identified as Amir Nazir Mir, a resident of Dadsara, Awantipora, Pulwama, it said.

He was arrested from Awantipora, the central agency said. On September 14, 2018, four grenades were hurled at the building of Maksudan police station in Jalandhar, in which one police personnel was injured. Initially, an FIR was registered by the Jalandhar police to probe the case. The case was then taken up for investigation by the NIA in December.

"NIA investigation has revealed that the attack was handiwork of Kashmir-based terror outfit Ansar Ghazawat-ul-Hind (AGH)," the statement issued by the probe agency said. Mir is a key accused as he procured and facilitated delivery of four grenades used in the attack on the directions of AGH chief Zakir Musa, it said.

Two other accused hailing from Pulwama -- Fazil Bashir Pinchoo and Shahid Qayoom -- were earlier arrested in the case. They were pursuing their Bachelor of Technology (Civil) from St. Soldier Group of Colleges in Jalandhar, the statement said.

Mir was the active link between the arrested accused and the AGH chief, it said. Two more accused who were involved in the attack -- Rauf Ahmed Mir and Umar Ramzan -- were killed in an encounter with security forces in South Kashmir on December 22, 2018. They were also residents of Pulwama district.

(With inputs from agencies.)