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The five-member Joint Investigation Team (JIT) from Pakistan on Friday concluded its six-day probe on the Pathankot terror attacks. Now, India is planning to send its officials from the National Investigation Agency (NIA) there to continue the probe.
“The Pakistan JIT was informed that a team of NIA officials would like to visit Pakistan to carry forward the investigation in the Pathankot attack,” Sharad Kumar, Director General, NIA told reporters during a briefing.
The JIT arrived in India on Sunday morning. The team visited Pathankot Air Force base on Tuesday where it carried on its investigations. The investigators were allowed to interrogate 16 witnesses including SP Salwinder Singh, his cook Rajesh Verma and some formal witnesses as per agreed terms of reference and extant legal provisions, he said.
“The JIT informed us that they were collecting admissible evidence outside Pakistan under the provision of Section 188 of the CrPC of Pakistan, that will legally enable them to be used in prosecution,” Kumar said.
He added that the JIT was briefed on the slain terrorists, who allegedly belonged from Pakistan-based militant outfit Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM). India believes it was JeM that behind the attacks that took place on January 2.
“The NIA shared with JIT the identity and the address of the four terrorists and requested that the JIT confirm the same. NIA presented the JIT with concrete evidence against the office-bearers of JeM who conspired in the attack and the handlers of the terrorists who facilitated and guided them,” Kumar said.
The JIT was led by Muhammad Rai Tahir, Additional Inspector-General, Punjab Counter Terrorism Department (CTD). Other members of the team were Muhammed Azeem Arshad, Additional Director (Lahore), Intelligence Bureau; Lt. Col. Tanvir Ahmad from the Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI); Lt. Col. Irfan Mirza from Military Intelligence (MI) and Punjab CTD Inspector Shahid Tanveer.
Apparently, the team will now collate a report on its findings and submit it to their government.
This JIT was formed last month by the Punjab government there because of the FIR registered in Gujranwala by the Pakistan government on February 18 under the Anti-Terrorism Act 1997.
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