Omar Farooq, a suspected linkman of terrorist outfit Hizbul Mujaheedin, has confessed that Hizbul operative Qamar-uz-Zaman was planning to strengthen the network of the terror outfit in Guwahati, the gateway to Northeast.
Guwahati police on Saturday arrested a suspected linkman of banned terrorist outfit Hizbul Mujahideen from Byrnihat area on the outskirts of the city.
Farooq, who hails from Holmara in Hojai district, was arrested by Guwahati police during an operation at 5 pm on Saturday.
Also read: Hizbul Mujahideen linkman falls in police net at Byrnihat
Sources said, “Zaman had stayed in Omar’s house at Hojai’s Holmara for five days. Omar gave support to Qamar-uz only because of money. Omar got ready to assist Qamar-uz for Rs 30,000.”
“Omar has also confessed during interrogations that Qamar-uz Zaman came to Guwahati for recruiting members in Hizbul Mujaheedin,” said sources.
Meanwhile, Saiful Islam alias Liton, brother of was picked up by police Qamar-uz Zaman for interrogation.
So far, four people from Assam have been arrested by police on charges of having links with Hizbul Mujaheedin.
Apart from Qamar-uz Zaman and Omar Farooq, the two others who have been arrested by police are Shahnewas Alom from Balirampathar village under Nilbagan Police Station in Hojai district and Saidul Alom, a resident of Lanka in Hojai.
While Shahnewas was arrested on Thursday, Saidul was arrested on Saturday.
On Sunday, both Saidul and Omar were produced before court at Hojai. They have been remainded in 14-day police custody.
At Byrnihat, Farooq was working as a carousel operator with Ananda Mela.
“Investigation is going on,” said a police official.
Earlier, Qamar-uz-Zaman from Jamunamukh in Hojai was arrested recently by the Anti Terrorist Squad (ATS) of the UP Police from Kanpur. He had been missing since 2017.
Dispur police sources said, “It was Alom who had introduced Omar Farooq with Qamar-uz-Zaman.”
A team of Assam Police reached Uttar Pradesh on Saturday after a Hizbul Mujahideen terrorist from Central Assam’s Hojai district was arrested in Kanpur.
“We have sent a team to Kanpur. They will coordinate with the ATS who are interrogating Zaman. We will try to get more information about the network in Assam,” a top police official told reporters.
Meanwhile, Ankur Jain, Hojai Superintendent of Police (SP), reportedly said that Saidul Alom was a meritorious student, but he had come in touch with terror elements in 2015 during his visit to Delhi’s Nizamuddin Markaz Masjid.
In 2018, Alom came in touch with Qamar-uz-Zaman.
The Hojai police boss reportedly said the trio – Qamar-uz-Zaman, Shahnewaz and Saidul had been in constant touch since then.
“Alom went to Srinagar in April last and got in touch with few Hizbul Mujahideen terrorists. In the meantime, Qamar-uz-Zaman directed Alom to verify few locations in Assam to expand the network of the outfit and targetted Lumding area in Hojai,” Jain reportedly said.
The SP further said that investigation is on to unearth more details about the plan of the terror outfit. He also claimed that Qamar-uz-Zaman during interrogation confessed that he had sent money from Srinagar to the bank account of Omar Farooq to distribute the same among the sleeper cells working for the outfit.