Sources say Davinder Singh escorted the terrorists from Shopian in south Kashmir (File)
Jammu and Kashmir's police officer Davinder Singh sheltered terrorists in his home in Srinagar, top sources said on Monday on the Deputy Superintendent of Police arrested on Saturday with three Hizbul Mujahideen terrorists. The details emerged after raids at Davinder Singh's home soon after the arrest. An AK rifle and two pistols were found, according to sources.
Davinder Singh, a decorated officer who now stands suspended, was allegedly transporting hardcore terrorists out of Kashmir when he was caught on the Jammu-Srinagar highway. Investigations reveal that the three terrorists captured with the officer had stayed at his heavily-guarded home in Srinagar's Badami Bagh cantonment.
Sources say Davinder Singh escorted the terrorists from Shopian in south Kashmir to his home on Friday and had them stay overnight. Top Hizbul Mujahideen commander Naveed Babu, who is also police deserter, and his two accomplices Irfan and Rafi, spent the night in the home right next to the Army's 15 Corps Headquarters.
Sources say they set out on Saturday morning for Jammu, from where they were planning to go to Delhi.
Sources told NDTV that the police officer, who was awarded President's Police Medal for Gallantry just six months ago, had transported Naveed multiple times to different places. Last year, he had transported him to Jammu.
Sources say Singh is being treated like a terrorist and is being interrogated by a joint team of security and intelligence agencies. Among the questions they want answers to is whether Singh's visit to Delhi is linked to Republic Day, just two weeks away.
Police sources say they had been tracking Singh's movement and that of Naveed since Friday morning.
When he allegedly brought three terrorists to his home on Friday evening, policemen in plainclothes were already watching him secretly.
A day before, the officer posted at Srinagar international airport received 15 foreign diplomats, including the US envoy, for a two-day visit to Jammu and Kashmir on Thursday. No one would have imagined then, say sources, that he would be arrested along with terrorists.
Sources say Singh and the three terrorists left his home around 10 am on Saturday. When they were about 60 km from Srinagar, the police intercepted the car.
Police sources say the arrest of Naveed is a huge catch; there was a reward of Rs 20 lakh on his head. Irfan, sources say, had visited Pakistan five times in the last few years and security agencies were clueless about his activities.
Singh had been in trouble in the past over reports that it he who sent parliament attack convict Afzal Guru to Delhi and arranged logistics for terrorists who attacked parliament.
Before his execution in 2013, Afzal Guru had claimed in a letter that the police officer had asked him to accompany a parliament attack accused to Delhi and arrange his stay there. Police, however, say they have no record linking him to parliament attack.