Major Crackdown On Jamaat In Kashmir, Properties Worth Crores To Be Seized

In a major crackdown on banned outfit Jamaat e Islami (JEI) in Jammu and Kashmir, the State Investigation Agency (SIA) has initiated measures to seize assets of JEI worth hundreds of crores of rupees.

The agency has identified 188 properties of Jamaat and the first seizure of assets started today. Nine properties, including two school buildings belonging to JEI, were seized by the SIA in Shopian today.

SIA said that Shopian is highly significant for Jamaat and they chose to launch the crackdown on party assets in the same district.

"Shopian properties of JEI are the first to be notified in a series of properties belonging to the group in other districts of J&K. Shopian has a lot of significance vis a vis Jamaat," said an SIA statement.

Since morning, SIA sleuths, accompanied by heavy police contingents, raided the properties and formally seized them after obtaining an order from the District Magistrate of Shopian.

The agency put up banners at the seized properties, restricting entry and use of those premises.

Jamaat e Islami is the largest politico-religious organisation in Jammu and Kashmir with a massive network of schools and other social infrastructure before it was banned in 2019.

Jamaat is accused of supporting terrorism. It was the ideological mentor of Hizbul Mujahideen, the largest indigenous terrorist group in Kashmir in the 1990s.

"Seizure of these assets will choke the availability of funds for secessionist activities and dismantle the ecosystem of anti-national elements and terror networks hostile to India's sovereignty" said the SIA, adding that the properties have been taken over under Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act or UAPA.

According to SIA, the seizure of assets will help "uproot the menace of terror funding to a great extent in J&K, besides being a stepping stone towards ensuring rule of law and a society without fear".