Close aide of Masood Azhar figures in list
Modi govt committed to eliminating every terror module: Amit Shah
Srinagar, Jul 04: The Centre on Saturday designated 23 more individuals as terrorists under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA), including 11 natives of Jammu and Kashmir, saying the move is intended to dismantle terror networks operating from Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK).
According to the news agency—Kashmir News Observer (KNO) the Union Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) issued a notification adding the names to the Fourth Schedule of the UAPA, taking the total number of individuals notified as terrorists under the law to 57 since the 2019 amendment empowered the Centre to designate individuals as terrorists.
Union Home Minister Amit Shah said PM Modi led-government remains committed to its policy of “zero tolerance” against terrorism and would continue taking action against those involved in activities targeting India.
In a post on X, Shah said the 23 individuals, affiliated with banned terrorist organisations, had been designated under the UAPA for their alleged involvement in anti-India activities, terrorist attacks, infiltration, arms smuggling, recruitment and financing of terrorism.
Shah said “Pursuing PM Shri Narendra Modi Ji’s vision of zero tolerance against terror: the MHA today declared 23 dreaded terror functionaries affiliated with banned organisations as terrorists under the provisions of the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act. The designated terrorists are involved in anti-India activities, carrying out terror attacks, inciting terror, trafficking arms, infiltrating through the border, facilitating terrorist organisations, raising funds and recruiting terrorists. Out of the 23 terrorists announced today, 17 are Pakistani nationals and 6 are Indian nationals. However, all of them at present operate terrorist activities from Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Jammu and Kashmir.”
An official said that formally designating these individuals as terrorists will not only help dismantle the terror ecosystem by curbing their financial networks, movements, recruitment capabilities, and terror-linked activities, but will also send a strong message of deterrence against anti-national and terrorist acts. Furthermore, it will enhance the capacity of security and law enforcement agencies to initiate coordinated legal, investigative, and preventive actions at both national and international levels.
According to the MHA, 17 of the newly designated individuals are Pakistani nationals while six are Indian nationals. It said all 23 are currently operating from Pakistan or Pakistan-occupied Kashmir.
The ministry also said 11 of those designated are natives of Jammu and Kashmir, who are allegedly operating from across the border after crossing over and are involved in facilitating infiltration, recruitment, logistics, weapons supply and financing for terrorist organisations.
The Jammu and Kashmir natives named in the notification are Masood Ilyas Kashmiri, Abdullah Jihadi, Firdous Ahmad Bhat, Haroon Rashid Ganai, Bilal Ahmed Mir, Abid Qayoom Lone, Nazir Ahmed Gujjar, Mohammad Yaqoob, Owais Farooz, Wasim Noor Jat and Mohammad Shahid Faisal.
Officials said the designation would strengthen legal action against the accused by enabling investigating agencies to target their financial networks, restrict their movements and enhance coordination with domestic and international agencies dealing with terrorism-related cases.
The notification includes operatives linked to Pakistan-based organisations such as Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM), Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT), Jamaat-ud-Dawa (JuD), Harkat-ul-Mujahideen (HuM), Pakistan Markazi Muslim League (PMML), Al-Qaeda and ISIS.
According to the government, several of those designated have been accused of coordinating cross-border infiltration, arranging the supply of weapons and explosives, recruiting youth through social media, raising funds for terror activities and planning attacks in different parts of the country, particularly in Jammu and Kashmir.
Among those named are Masood Ilyas Kashmiri, whom the government described as a close associate of JeM chief Masood Azhar and an infiltration coordinator into Kashmir; Mufti Mohammad Asghar Khan, alleged to head JeM’s military wing in PoK; and Abdul Rauf, Hafiz Khalid Waleed and Maulana Saifullah Khalid, who are accused of holding senior positions in Pakistan-based terrorist organisations.
The MHA said formally designating the individuals as terrorists would help curb their fundraising, recruitment, movement and operational capabilities while strengthening the legal framework for coordinated action against them.
The UAPA was amended in 2019 to allow the Centre to notify individuals, in addition to organisations, as terrorists under Section 35 of the Act.
Officials said the latest notification forms part of the government’s continuing efforts to target the leadership, facilitators and support structures of cross-border terrorist organisations.
INDIVIDUALS DESIGNATED AS TERRORISTS
Masood Ilyas Kashmiri (also known as Mufti Masood Ilyas, Masood Ilyas, Abu Mohammad, or M. Masood Ilyas)is a Pakistani national affiliated with Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM). He is a close confidant of Maulana Masood Azhar and the key coordinator for infiltration into Kashmir. He is actively involved in recruiting youth into terrorist groups via social media and raising funds for terrorism. He orchestrated the attack on a police checkpoint near the PDP office in Sunjwan, Jammu, in April 2022.
Mohammad Musaddiq (alias Doctor, Abdul Mannan, Sajjad, Hamza, Wahid Khan) is a Pakistani national affiliated with Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM). He serves as the launching commander for the Lasiyakot sector, facilitating infiltration across the border via tunnels. He has been involved in sending consignments of arms and ammunition to India using drones. Additionally, he was involved in conducting reconnaissance of strategic locations such as the RJB complex in Ayodhya, the RSS headquarters in Nagpur, and the IOCL refinery in Panipat.
Mufti Mohammad Asghar Khan, alias Abu Saad or Saad Jimiki, is a Pakistani national affiliated with Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM). He serves as the JeM ‘Amir’ (chief) and head of its military wing in PoK. He is one of the key conspirators behind the terrorist attack on the Indian Army camp in Nagrota, Jammu. He runs camps in Muzaffarabad to provide jihadist and military training to terrorists.
Hafiz Abdul Shakoor alias Qari Jarrar is a Pakistani national and is affiliated with Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM) and Harkat-ul-Mujahideen (HuM). He facilitated the infiltration of three Pakistani terrorists via the Samba-Kathua sector for the attack on the Nagrota Army camp. He participated in the Afghan war during 1995–96 and coordinates terrorist activities with the assistance of the ISI. He is a member of the JeM’s governing council (Shura).
Abdullah Jihadi alias Shahnawaz alias Al-Hijama is a Pakistani national and is affiliated with Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM). He is a co-conspirator of Mufti Asgar Khan and facilitates the infiltration of terrorists into the North Kashmir region. He has attempted to incite hatred and disaffection against the Government of India. He used to manage several launching camps located in the Kupwara and Baramulla districts.
Firdous Ahmad Bhat is an Indian national (currently based in Pakistan) associated with Lashkar-e-Taiba. He serves as a ‘launching commander’ for the group, having crossed into Pakistan via the Wagah border in 2018 using valid travel documents. He facilitates safe passage for foreign terrorists across the Line of Control (LoC). Additionally, he is involved in supplying weapons to Over Ground Workers (OGWs) and radicalizing the youth of South Kashmir to recruit them into terrorist activities.
Ghulam Farid (alias Gulshan Kumar) is a Pakistani national and is affiliated with Jaish-e-Mohammed. He served in the Pakistan Army from 2001 to 2005. Subsequently, in September 2008, he entered India illegally via Bangladesh. He was arrested in Jammu in December 2008 and was later deported to Pakistan in July 2019.
Haroon Rashid Ganai alias Shunu is an Indian national (currently residing in Pakistan) and is affiliated with Lashkar-e-Taiba. He traveled to Pakistan with valid documents in March 2018 and joined Lashkar-e-Taiba there. He incites youths from the Kashmir Valley to join terrorist ranks and supplies arms and ammunition to Over Ground Workers for carrying out terrorist activities.
Bilal Ahmed Mir, alias ‘Ahmed Bhai’, is an Indian national (currently residing in Muzaffarabad, PoK) and is affiliated with Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) and The Resistance Front (TRF). Operating from across the border (Pakistan/PoK), he conspires to incite and instigate local Kashmiri youth to engage in jihad. Furthermore, he is directly involved in managing the illicit supply chain of arms, ammunition, and logistics into the Kashmir Valley.
Abid Qayoom Lone is an Indian national (currently residing in PoK) and is affiliated with Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT). He traveled to Pakistan via the Attari check post in February 2020 and did not return. He is involved in planning attacks on security forces in Jammu and Kashmir and raising funds for LeT. He smuggles narcotics on a large scale from Pakistan into India through an organized syndicate operating along the Line of Control (LoC), with the proceeds used to finance terrorist activities.
Nazir Ahmed Gujjar alias Abu Manazil is an Indian national (currently residing in Islamabad, Pakistan) and is affiliated with Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT). He crossed the Line of Control into PoK in 2006. He recruited local youths to revive terrorist activities in the Doda and Kishtwar regions. He has been a key operator in sending consignments of arms and ammunition into Indian territory via drones across the Samba and R.S. Pura sectors.
Abdul Rauf (also known as Hafiz Abdul Rauf or Hafiz Abdur Rauf)is a Pakistani national associated with Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT), Jamaat-ud-Dawa (JuD), and Falah-e-Insaniyat Foundation (FIF). He has been a senior leader of Lashkar since 1999 and operates under the direct command of the terrorist Hafiz Saeed. He works to mobilize funds and public support for Lashkar at an international level under the guise of charitable organizations such as the ‘Falah-e-Insaniyat Foundation’ (FIF) and Al-Madina Welfare Trust. The United States has designated him a ‘Specially Designated Global Terrorist’ (SDGT).
Ashfaq Ahmed (alias Ishfaq Ahmed) is a Pakistani national associated with Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM). He joined JeM in 2000 and is in charge of ‘Shuaba Hadith’ and the Al-Rehmat Trust (JeM’s charity wing) in Bahawalpur. He received jihadi training in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir. He was identified as one of the subscribers of the Pakistani mobile numbers used during the January 2016 attack on the Pathankot Air Force Station.
Hafiz Khalid Waleed (alias Hafiz Khalid Naik/Khalid Waleed) is a Pakistani national associated with Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) and Jamaat-ud-Dawa (JuD). He is the son-in-law of LeT chief Hafiz Mohammad Saeed and has been a member of the organization’s Central Advisory Committee since 2003. He was the key mastermind behind the June 2016 Pampore attack, in which eight Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) personnel were killed. He was designated as a global terrorist by the US Department of the Treasury in August 2012.
Maulana Imdad Ullah Makki (also known as Maulana Imdad, Imdad Bhai, or Maulana Imdadullah) is a Pakistani national and is affiliated with Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM). He serves as the *Amir* (chief) of Jaish’s prisoners’ wing (*Shoba-e-Aseeran*) and heads the organization’s legal affairs. He is a very close associate of Maulana Masood Azhar and his deputy, Mufti Abdul Rauf Asghar. He was involved in real-time coordination with the terrorists who attacked the Pathankot airbase in January 2016.
Maulana Saifullah Khalid (alias Waliul, Mohammad Salim, Wajid) is a Pakistani national and is affiliated with Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) and the Pakistan Markazi Muslim League (PMML). He serves as the General Secretary of the Pakistan Markazi Muslim League and previously held the position of President of the Milli Muslim League (MML). He has headed several wings of Lashkar and Jamaat-ud-Dawa, such as the propaganda department and the control and reform wing. In April 2018, the United States designated him as a Specially Designated Global Terrorist (SDGT).
Mohammad Yaqoob (alias Abu Sumama, Samama Ilyas, Waris Ali) is a Pakistani national affiliated with Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT). He currently operates as an LeT operational commander based in Islamabad (Chatta Bakhtawar). He coordinates financial and logistical support for other LeT cadres active in the Kashmir Valley to carry out terrorist activities in India. A case has been registered against him under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA) at the CI Kashmir Police Station in Srinagar.
Maulana Yusuf Taibi (alias Mohammad Yusuf) is a Pakistani national associated with Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) and Jamaat-ud-Dawa (JuD). He is a key leader within LeT/JuD, currently affiliated with the organization’s control and reform (*Dawat-o-Islah*) wing. He previously headed the ‘Jamia Al-Dirasat Al-Islamia Trust’ (JADIAT), a Karachi-based entity linked to LeT/JuD. Currently, he is associated with the ‘Al-Qadsia Islamic Center’ in Lahore and delivers Friday religious sermons (*Khutba*) at the Sargodha *Markaz* in Punjab.
Owais Farooz (alias Owais Ahmed Mir / Owais Farooz Mir) is an Indian national associated with Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT). He traveled to Pakistan via the Wagah border on a valid Indian passport in April 2018 and joined the terrorist ranks of the LeT. In January 2023, his brother, Farzan Feroz, was arrested by the Srinagar Police with 450 grams of heroin (valued at approximately ₹9.95 lakh) and an LeT letterhead. The NIA Court, Pulwama, has issued a proclamation order against him under Section 82 of the CrPC.
Qari Yaqub Sheikh (also known as Qari Mohammad Yaqub Sheikh, Yaqub Sheikh, Qari Sheikh Muhammad Yaqub, and Mohammad Yaqub) is a Pakistani national and is affiliated with the Pakistan Markazi Muslim League (PMML) and Jamaat-ud-Dawa (JuD). He is a central leader of JuD and a member of its central ‘Dawati team’ (proselytization team). He contested the 2018 Pakistani general election as a candidate for the Milli Muslim League (MML). He has played a prominent role in missions to raise funds for Lashkar and JuD in Saudi Arabia. In August 2012, the United States designated him as a global terrorist.
Rana Iftikhar (also known as Rana Waleed Atif, Rana Iftikhar Haider, Rana Iftikhar Ahmed, or Haider Khan) is a Pakistani national associated with Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) and Jamaat-ud-Dawa (JuD). He is a close associate of LeT chief Hafiz Saeed and serves as the key manager of finances for the organization’s Kashmir operations. He heads ‘Shoba-e-Aseeran,’ the wing responsible for the welfare of the families of terrorists who have been killed or are imprisoned in Indian jails. He was arrested in 1993 after being wounded during an encounter in the Mendhar sector of Jammu & Kashmir and remained incarcerated in an Indian prison until 2004.
Wasim Noor Jat alias Qari Wasim is a Pakistani national associated with Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM). He is a JeM ‘launching commander’ responsible for operations in the Kotli area. During 2021–22, he was involved in activities related to dropping weapons and ammunition into Indian territory via drones. He was previously arrested by security forces in October 2008 and was incarcerated at Kot Bhalwal Central Jail, Jammu, from 2012 to 2015; following his release, he was deported to Pakistan.
Mohammad Shahid Faisal (alias Ustad, Muhandis, Zakir) holds Pakistani nationality (originally Indian, currently active in Rawalpindi) and is affiliated with Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT), Al-Qaeda, and ISIS. He is the key mastermind and handler behind the 2012 Bengaluru LeT conspiracy case and the 2013 Nanded LeT case, which involved plots for the targeted killings of right-wing politicians and journalists. He fled to Pakistan in 2013 with the assistance of terrorist Farhatullah Ghori. Investigations reveal his involvement as an online handler in the Rameshwaram Cafe blast case (2024), the Mangaluru cooker blast, and the Al-Hind ISIS module case. He recruits youth through anti-national and jihadist videos shared on social media and YouTube/Telegram channels (such as ‘Sawat-al-Haq’). (KNO)
