Centre declares 23 terror operatives as ‘terrorists’ under UAPA

The government has approved the designation of 23 individuals as “terrorists” under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, including 17 Pakistani nationals and six Indian nationals alleged to be operating from Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir.

Announcing the move with a post on X, Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Saturday said said the Ministry of Home Affairs had designated 23 “dreaded terror functionaries” linked to banned organisations under the provisions of the UAPA. He said those named were involved in anti-India activities including terror attacks, incitement, arms trafficking, infiltration across the border, fundraising, recruitment and logistical support for militant outfits.

According to the Home Ministry, formally listing these individuals as terrorists will help choke their financial and recruitment networks, restrict their movement and strengthen the ability of security agencies to pursue coordinated legal, investigative and preventive action in India and abroad.

The ministry said all 23 are currently engaged in terror-related activities from bases in Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir. Of the 23, 17 are Pakistani nationals while six are Indian nationals, it added.

Among the most prominent names on the list is Masood Ilyas Kashmiri, also known by multiple aliases, a Pakistani national linked to the Jaish-e-Mohammed. The government described him as a close associate of JeM founder Masood Azhar and alleged that he had played a key role in facilitating infiltration into Kashmir, recruiting youth through social media and raising funds for terrorism.

The ministry also accused Kashmiri of orchestrating the April 2022 attack on a police checkpoint near the People's Democratic Party office in Sunjwan, Jammu.

The latest notification takes the total number of individuals designated as terrorists under Section 35 of the UAPA to 57 since the law was amended in 2019 to allow the Centre to notify individuals — and not only organisations — as terrorists and place them in the Fourth Schedule of the Act.

The others designated in the latest round include Mohammad Musadiq alias Doctor Abdul Mannan, Mufti Mohammad Asghar Khan, Hafiz Abdul Shakoor, Abdullah Jihadi, Firdous Ahmed Bhat, Ghulam Farid, Haroon Rashid Ganai, Bilal Ahmed Mir, Abid Qayoom Lone, Nazir Ahmed Gujjar, Abdul Rauf, Ashfaq Ahmed, Hafiz Khalid Walid, Maulana Imdad Ullah Makki, Maulana Saifullah Khalid and Mohammad Yaqoob, among others.

With IANS inputs