Mushtaq Ahmed Zargar
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Mushtaq Ahmed Zargar the third Islamic terrorist released as a result of the hijacking of an Indian Airlines Flight 814, is the leader of Al-Umar Mujahideen, an Islamist terrorist group, demanding the Indian state of Jammu and Kashmir's accession to Pakistan. Currently based in Muzaffarabad, the capital of Pakistan administered Kashmir, Zargar is the only Indian Kashmiri among the released trio.
[edit] History
Mushtaq Ahmed Zargar was born in 1967 and grew up in Gani Mohalla of the Jama Masjid area of Srinagar. He was motivated into militancy sometime in 1984, but he became famous during the kidnapping of Rubaiya Sayeed, daughter of the then home minister Mufti Mohammed Sayeed.
He parted ways with Yasin Malik of the Jammu and Kashmir Liberation Front after one of his suggestions was not accepted. Zargar then formed the Al-Umar Mujahideen in December 1989. The group went on to earn a reputation for planning and executing some of the most inhumane acts of terrorism in the Kashmir Valley.
Zargar is believed to be an ideal linchpin for the Pakistani intelligence establishment in Jammu and Kashmir, given the fact that he happens to be a Kashmiri who used to live in Srinagar's Jama Masjid area.
There are at least three dozen murder cases registered against him in Srinagar, where he was known for his militant activity. He was first arrested in 1984 when he was only 17.
Four years later, Zargar was picked up by Zahoor Sheikh, a member of the People's League, one of the precursors of the Jammu and Kashmir Liberation Front.
[edit] Terrorism
In August 1988, Zargar first crossed over to Pakistan for training. His second trip to Pakistan was in May 1989, for another round of training before launching himself into an orgy of violence.
Zargar killed several Kashmiri Pandits and was involved in attacks on security personnel. He fell out with Jammu Kashmir Liberation Front chief Yasin Malik soon after, and in December 1989, established the Al-Umar Mujahideen in Srinagar. He later opened an office in Muzaffarabad.
The Pakistani Inter-Services Intelligence found Al-Umar Mujahideen to be a perfect foil to the Jammu Kashmir Liberation Front, given that the latter, keen on liberation, was showing clear signs of upsetting Pakistan's plans to annex Kashmir.
The Pakistani Inter-Services Intelligence pumped money and material to Al Umar Mujahideen that set up an extensive extortion racket in Srinagar. Zargar was involved in at least seven kidnappings for ransom.
To help a businessman friend, he even ordered a ban on the use of Maruti vehicles in Srinagar. The reason: His friend was a dealer for a rival car manufacturer.
Zargar was considered to be the undisputed ganglord of Srinagar from 1989 to 1992, indulging in terrorist and criminal acts with equal felicity.
In 1992, Indian security forces gunned down several top commanders and finally arrested him in Srinagar.
He remained in Kotbalwal jail in Jammu until the then foreign minister Jaswant Singh was compelled to escort him to freedom in Kandahar, Afghanistan in exchange for the lives of 182 hijacked airline passengers.
As things stand, there are reports that the Pakistani intelligence establishment continues to assist Zargar, encouraging him to build up the pace and tempo of militant activity in Jammu and Kashmir.
