The National Investigation Agency (NIA) on Saturday after taking over the investigation of the high-profile case, re-registered fresh FIRs under the Arms and Explosive Acts against the arrested J&K Police DSP Davinder Singh and three terrorists of Hizbul Mujahideen (HM).
A team of NIA led by an Inspector General of the investigating agency has reached Srinagar where it formally took over the case from the J&K Police. The Home Ministry had ordered the NIA to investigate the case that has come as an embarrassment for the government because the arrested DSP was holding the strategic posting of anti-hijacking and security of the vital Srinagar Airport.
As a precautionary measure, the government has now transferred the security of the Srinagar and Jammu airports to the Central Industrial Security Force (CISF).
The NIA has re-registered the case RC no 01/2020/NIA and started an investigation.
The DSP and the three terrorists were arrested along with arms and ammunition while travelling in a car towards Jammu from Kashmir on 11 January.
The DSP has been stripped of the gallantry award and his dismissal has been recommended, said the J&K DGP Dilbag Singh.
Among the militants arrested with him was a policeman turned terrorist commander, Naved Babu, who had last year deserted with four sophisticated AK 47 assault rifles and joined the HM. Naved had reportedly stayed in the house of the DSP in the neighbourhood of the Srinagar based headquarters of the strategic 15 Corps of the Indian Army in the Badami Bagh Cantonment that is engaged in anti-terrorist operations in Kashmir.
He was allegedly taking Babu to Jammu to help him travel to Pakistan in connivance with Irfan, a lawyer.
The police had searched Davinder Singh’s residence in Srinagar where he had allegedly sheltered the terrorists. Two pistols, three rifles, grenades, and a large quantity of ammunition were seized from his residence.
A joint team of officers of the Army, BSF, CRPF, ITBP, J&K Police, and central and state intelligence agencies initially interrogated the DSP.