Missing youth from a trek expedition joins terror outfit Hizbul Mujahideen: J&K police

Jammu and Kashmir police on Tuesday claimed that a youth who went missing during a trekking expedition has joined Hizb ul Mujahideen.

“As per our reports, Hilal Ahmed has joined Hizbul Mujahideen, a local terror outfit,” said Inspector General Police, Kashmir range, Vijay Kumar.

On June 13 current year, Hilal, (Phd scholar), went for trekking along with five other youth to Naranag area of Ganderbal district. In the evening all his five friends returned back except him.

Pertinently, on Monday, his family members staged a peaceful protest and sought the intervention of Lieutenant Governor GC Murmu to take concrete steps to trace their son.

In recent years, many educated youngsters have joined terror ranks.

The first educated terrorist with a doctorate was Azhar-ud-Din Khan, 27, from Trusso Kandi of Kupwara district in north Kashmir.

On February 4, 2017, Azhar was killed at Amargarh in Sopore. Azhar completed his PhD in Arabic and was a lecturer on contract at a higher secondary school, before joining terrorist outfit in April 2016.

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Manan Wani of the remote Lolab village in Kupwara, who was pursuing PhD in Geology at the Aligarh Muslim University (AMU), joined Hizb-ul-Mujahideen in January 2018.

Wani had gone missing from AMU and later was killed in an encounter with security forces at Shatgund village of north Kashmir’s Handwara.

In 2018, Mohammad Rafi Bhat, assistant professor at Kashmir University got killed during an encounter with the security forces at Budigam area in Shopian district of south Kashmir.

The slain professor-turned-terrorist had done a doctorate in Sociology and had also qualified the National Eligibility Test twice and was also a Junior Research Fellow (JRF).

Eisa Fazili, an engineering student, joined the terror ranks in 2017. Fazili was killed along with 02 other terrorists, including a resident of Hyderabad in an encounter with security forces in Hakoora area of Anantnag district in March 2018.

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